people with disabilities

"Zion Clark has always had big dreams for himself despite the many hardships he faced growing up as a Black disabled child in the foster care system of Ohio. His childhood years were marked by instability as he moved from home to home, experiencing abuse and neglect. And yet his determination and grit pushed him to become an elite wrestler and wheelchair racer. His constant reinvention led him to activism, speaking out about the failings of the foster care system. The list of Zion's accomplishments and accolades is lengthy, but he's not even close to slowing down. As he says,'"Work with what you got! If I can do it, so can you'"--Jacket flap.

"Oksana Masters was born in Ukraine--in the shadow of Chernobyl--seemingly with the world against her. She was born with one kidney, a partial stomach, six toes on each foot, webbed fingers, no right bicep, and no thumbs. Her left leg was six inches shorter than her right, and she was missing both tibias. Relinquished to the orphanage system by birth parents daunted by the staggering cost of what would be their child's medical care, Oksana encountered numerous abuses, some horrifying. Salvation came at age seven when Gay Masters, an unmarried American professor who saw a photo of the little girl and became haunted by her eyes, waged a two-year war against stubborn adoption authorities to rescue Oksana from her circumstances. In America, Oksana endured years of operations that included a double leg amputation. Still, how could she hope to fit in when there were so many things making her different? As it turned out, she would do much more than fit in. Determined to prove herself and fueled by a drive to succeed that still smoldered from childhood, Oksana triumphed in not just one sport but four--winning against the world's best in elite rowing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, and road cycling competitions. Now considered one of the world's top athletes, she is the recipient of seventeen Paralympic medals, the most of any US athlete of the Winter Games, Paralympic or Olympic. This is Oksana's astonishing story of journeying through a series of dark tunnels--and how, with her mother's love, she finally found her way into the light. Her message to anyone who doesn't fit in: you can find a place where you excel--where you have worth"--Provided by the publisher.

When thirteen-year-old Ellie reluctantly agrees to enter a beauty pageant with her best friend Coralee, the director seems determined to feature Ellie and her wheelchair, so she must find a way to participate on her own terms, all while saving her friendship and forming a better relationship with her divorced dad.

Eight-year-old Aven Green is despondent when she does not master the piano in one day, but with new inspiration from guitarist Mr. Tom, who is armless like her, along with a special gift from her great-grandma, Aven learns she does not need to be perfect to perform.

"When fifteen-year-old Harris moves with his family from California (home of beautiful-but-inaccessible beaches) to New Jersey (home of some much-hyped pizza and bagels), he's determined to be known as more than just the kid in the powered wheelchair. Armed with his favorite getting-to-know-you question ("What's your favorite color?"), he'll weed out the incompatible people--the greens and the purples, people who are too close to his own blue to make for good friends--and surround himself with outgoing yellows, adventurous oranges, and even thrilling reds. But first things first: he needs to find a new nurse, stat, so that his mom doesn't have to keep accompanying him to school. Enter Miranda, a young nursing student who graduated from Harris's new high school. Beautiful, confident, and the perfect blend of orange and red, Miranda sees Harris for who he really is--funny, smart, and totally worthy of the affections of Nory Fischer, the cute girl who's in most of his classes. With Miranda at his side, Harris soon befriends geeky Zander (yellow) and even makes headway with Nory (who stubbornly refuses to reveal her favorite color). But Miranda is fighting her own demons, and Harris starts to wonder if she truly has his best interests at heart"--Provided by publisher.

"Meet 'The Original Mermaid,' Annette Kellerman! All her life, Annette wanted one thing: to feel free. As a girl she found freedom in the water, where she could swim without the leg braces she needed on land. As she grew up, Annette swam in Australia and England and America and beyond, performing synchronized swimming--which she invented!--and competing in swim races and diving exhibitions. But always she was bogged down by her heavy swim clothes. Clothes that only women had to wear, not men. So Annette designed her own swim costume. And then, she fought for the right to wear it--and for the right for all women to feel free"--Provided by the publisher.

One year after the fire that claimed her parents' and cousin's lives and left her severely disfigured, sixteen-year-old Ava faces the return to high school.

"Daniel leads a rich life in the university town of Athens, Georgia. He's got a couple close friends, a steady paycheck working for a regional airline, and of course, for a few glorious days each fall, college football tailgates. He considers himself to be a mostly lucky guy--despite the fact that he's suffered from a debilitating disease since he was a small child, one that has left him unable to speak or to move without a wheelchair. Largely confined to his home, Daniel spends the hours he's not online communicating with irate air travelers observing his neighborhood from his front porch. One young woman passes by so frequently that spotting her out the window has almost become part of his daily routine. Until the day he's almost sure he sees her being kidnapped..."--Provided by publisher.

Twelve-year-old Ellie, who has cerebral palsy, finds her life transformed when she moves with her mother to small-town Oklahoma to help care for her grandfather, who has Alzheimer's Disease.

"When Emma and Danya are in a terrible car accident Emma is left paralyzed, and she blames Danya for causing the accident"--OCLC.