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  • The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen book cover
  • The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen book cover
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The Running Dream

by Wendelin Van Draanen

A runner’s life reshaped

$13.38 USD
$22.30 USD $13.38 USD
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AlbakiReads Editorial

A runner’s life reshaped

After a car accident costs Jessica a leg, the prospect of walking with a prosthesis does little to answer what running means to her. Her recovery is intertwined with returning to school, where Rosa, a girl with cerebral palsy, tutors her in the math she has missed. As Jessica receives support from family, friends, her coach, and track teammates, her ambitions expand beyond racing on her own: she wants Rosa to share the finish line. The story brings together athletic recovery, disability, and the ways Jessica’s understanding of another person changes through their connection.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Teens and young adults interested in track and field stories.
  • Readers interested in stories about disability, recovery, and support from family and teammates.
  • Readers looking for fiction that connects athletic goals with an evolving friendship.

Themes

Running and athletic identityDisability and recoveryFriendship and understandingCommunity support

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

When Jessica is told she'll never run again, she puts herself back together--and learns to dream bigger than ever before. The acclaimed author of Flipped delivers a powerful and healing story.

Jessica thinks her life is over when she loses a leg in a car accident. She's not comforted by the news that she'll be able to walk with the help of a prosthetic leg. Who cares about walking when you live to run?

As she struggles to cope, Jessica feels that she's both in the spotlight and invisible. People who don't know what to say act like she's not there. Jessica's embarrassed to realize that she's done the same to a girl with CP named Rosa. A girl who is going to tutor her through all the math she's missed. A girl who sees right into the heart of her.

With the support of family, friends, a coach, and her track teammates, Jessica may actually be able to run again. But that's not enough for her now. She doesn't just want to cross finish lines herself--she wants to take Rosa with her.

"Inspirational. The pace of Van Draanen's prose matches Jessica's at her swiftest. Readers will zoom through the book just as Jessica blazes around the track. A lively and lovely story." --Kirkus Reviews
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