Middle school is never easy and starting a new one is really hard, but imagine doing it with no arms. In Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling, Aven is thirteen and has lived her whole life without arm. It's always been a challenge, but never one to which she couldn't rise. She has amazing parents and great friends who accept her for who she is. When she has to move across the country and start over with new friends is when she starts to struggle. Little by little Aven makes herself at home and finds a few like-minded friends who struggle with their own difficulties.
A sweet book in the vein of Wonder by R.J. Palacio, Aven shows us how hard life can be, but how accepting others and our own selves for who we are can make all the difference. This isn't a sunshine-and-rainbows, ignore-all-reality kind of book, but it does teach and inspire with humor. Readers will be exposed to a few different disabilities that they might see out in the world and will come to understand more about them and how to respond with empathy. And couldn't we all use a little more of that in the world?
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