Pansy's best friend, Anna got meningitis at a summer camp and now is brain damaged and having seizures. Pansy is having a hard time adjusting to this - especially since she and Anna had a big fight before Anna left. Now Pansy feels like she needs to be extraordinary at everything to prove to Anna that she is a good friend. That means cutting off her hair since she chickened out earlier, learning to ice skate, joining Girl Scouts, and being the best reader. But what if it's not enough? What if Anna never gets better?
So there has been a lot of discussion in the 2 committees I am on about dead or sick mothers or dads or even friends. Yep...happens alot in middle grade fiction along with best friends drifitng apart, best friend who is the opposite gender becomes more than a friends, and so on. I don't mind it as much as some because to have a good plot there needs to be conflict and for middle grade realistic fiction it is usually friends or family.
I am bothered by the use of "retard" is this book and another one I read recently. My sister works with mentally handicapped adults and I find the term quite offensive. Is it really necessary?
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