book review #4

The Running Dream

 
By: Wendelin Van Draanen

            Jessica Carlisle was a runner. A good one too. Running was her life. But her running career all changed when a tragic accident happened. She had literally just set her record for the 400 hundred when, minutes after, the team’s bus collided with a car.

            Jessica’s right leg got crushed during the accident. The doctors weren’t able to fix it, so it had to come off. All she could think about was running. She would never be able to run again. Sometimes she even thought she’d be better off dead than living.

            But she has to take this all one step at a time. Her first step, get out of bed and the hospital.

            After weeks of getting used to using crutches, she finally goes back to school when her best friend Fiona convinces her to come back. But she’s scared to death. What will people think of her? Will she ever be treated like a normal person? Those questions go through her mind as she approaches the school doors.

            Everyone at school is nice to her and talks to her, but it’s just not the same. The only person who treats her like normal is Fiona and a girl named Rosa. In math class, because of her crutches, she has to sit at the back of the room at a table with a girl who has cerebral Palsy. She never really paid attention to her before, but she realizes that was a big mistake. She discovers who Rosa actually is and they become really good friends. One of Rosa’s biggest problems is she wants people to see who she really is, not just see her condition. Jessica realizes that’s what she wants.

            After waiting and waiting, Jessica finally gets her prosthetic leg. And it’s great for her to be able to walk again. And to be able to look normal. It’s really great for a while, but she longs to be able to be on the track team again. She wishes more than ever to run.

            Later on, she finds out that she just might be able to run again when her coach shows her a video of a runner with a special leg designed just for running. It might be a dream come true, but the only problem is money. The prosthetic leg costs twenty thousand dollars. Her family is already working off her first leg and the hospital bills.

            Her track team decides to do a fundraiser. They wash cars, have bake sales and do everything they can to get Jessica to run again. But will it be enough to pay for the leg? Everyone wonders this themselves. Will Jessica finally be able to run again?