Stories Like Me
Please Pay Attention
Please Pay Attention
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Hardcover
Synopsis
There is a Before and an After for sixth grader Bea Coughlin. Before the shooting at her school that took the lives of her classmates and teacher and After, when she must figure out how to grieve, live, and keep rolling forward. But as her community rallies in a tidal wave of marches and speeches and protests, Bea can’t get past the helplessness she felt in her wheelchair as others around her took cover.
Through the help of therapeutic horseback riding, Bea finally begins to feel like herself again. And as she heals, she finds her voice and the bravery to demand change.
Author
Jamie Sumner is the author of Roll with It, Time to Roll, Rolling On, Tune It Out, One Kid’s Trash, The Summer of June, Maid for It, Deep Water, Please Pay Attention, Schooled, and Glory Be. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other publications. She loves stories that celebrate the grit and beauty in all kids. She is also the mother of a son with cerebral palsy and has written extensively about parenting a child with special needs. She and her family live in Nashville, Tennessee.
Praise
* "The poetic language makes the horror of school violence clear without depicting it in a graphic way. In the end, Bea’s courageous recovery will prompt readers of all ages to examine whether school lockdown policies truly accommodate all students—and consider the possibility of a more peaceful world where such policies can be a relic of the past."
— BookPage, STARRED REVIEW
* “Intimate, lyrical . . . . an accessible and cohesive interpretation of what it means to live with grief and find a way to feel like oneself after tragedy, as well as an homage to young voices and their impact on society.”
— Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
* "This heartfelt exploration of trauma, recovery, and the search for light in the darkest of times will resonate with middle school readers, offering a meaningful reflection on personal and societal healing."
— School Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
"An emotionally gripping story about school violence, trauma, and recovery, whose focus on disability and mobility asks important questions about common assumptions and protocols of disaster preparedness and safety."
— Horn Book
Product Details
ISBN: 9781665956079
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