OUT OF MY HEART

A tween with cerebral palsy expands her horizons when she attends her first summer camp.

Twelve-year-old Melody Brooks, from Draper’s bestselling award winner Out of My Mind (2010), returns. As the school year ends, her classmates are full of their plans for summer camp, and Melody wonders if there could be a camp that is accessible for her; she uses a wheelchair and an assistive communication device. After getting brochures from the library, Melody convinces her parents to overcome their concerns and enroll her in Camp Green Glades, a camp for kids with disabilities. Melody feels some nerves, but the staff are welcoming, and she bonds with Trinity, her Jamaican American camp counselor who has a leg brace, and meets the three other girls who will share her cabin. Over the course of the week, the campers go swimming, hiking, horseback riding, and zip lining as they make new friends and have new adventures. Melody also has her first crush on and dance with a boy. Melody’s character continues to be irresistible, and a strength of the novel is how completely readers experience the world through her eyes. The supporting characters, who have a variety of ethnic backgrounds and types of disabilities, add richness; Melody’s race is ambiguous. The book includes careful, detailed descriptions of physical logistics, but it’s Melody emotions, thoughts, and perspectives that propel the narrative.

A deeply satisfying and worthy continuation of a beloved story.