Review: Tune It Out

Tune It Out by Jamie Sumner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Jamie Sumner has written another excellent book about a young girl who isn't like everyone else. In Tune It Out, readers meet Lou who struggles with loud noises and physical contact because they are painful for her. Teachers have suggested that perhaps she is on the spectrum, but her mother refuses to get Lou a diagnosis. Lou and her mom are struggling financially and living in their truck. Her mom tries to earn extra money by having Lou perform at clubs and fairs. She wants Lou to score a record deal for her amazing singing talent, but performing is extremely difficult for Lou.

After an accident causes Lou to be taken from her mom, she moves across the country to live with her aunt and uncle that she doesn't even know. They enroll her in a fancy private school, and it's the first time Lou has had stability in her life in years. Through the help of her new friends, aunt and uncle, and a guidance counselor, Lou starts to understand and know herself better than she ever has. She also sees her mother for who she truly is, and it isn't a pretty picture.

I loved Sumner's first book Roll with It because even though the main character had a disability, she was fierce and did not let it define her. In the beginning of this story, Lou allows herself to be defined by her disability. At first, she doesn't have a name for her issues, but she later learns that she has Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). She (and her mother) allowed her SPD to prevent her from making friends or even going to school in the past. I really appreciate Sumner's writing because she shows how someone with SPD would truly struggle; she doesn't just gloss it over, and make her some tough superhero who easily overcomes her SPD. While she does work towards finding ways to cope with SPD, Sumner shows that it is difficult for her to be touched even if only for a few seconds.

My son is on the spectrum, and he struggles with sensory processing as well. Loud unexpected noises were torture for him years ago, but with time, therapy, and exposure, he has gotten much better at handling these types of noises. When he was 3, he would cry and beg to leave my husband's basketball games because the buzzer hurt his ears; now at 8, he sits on the bench with the team. I look forward to sharing this book with students at my school so they can learn about the challenges that some of their peers face on a daily basis.

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Review: Roll with It

Roll with It by Jamie Sumner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely loved Ellie and her feisty nature. If you are a fan of Dusti Bowling's novel Life of a Cactus, you will be equally enamored with Roll With It. Ellie has cerebral palsy and must use a wheelchair. At school, she has an aid who helps her during class change and when she has to use the bathroom, which is extremely annoying to her. When Ellie's mom surprises her by moving them from Tennessee to Oklahoma, at first, Ellie is really excited. She doesn't really have friends in Nashville, and she will get to live with her grandparents. After her first day at our new school, she is ready to tap out. Fortunately, things start to get a little better at school, and she actually makes friends with two other kids who live in her trailer park. Ellie spends most of her free time trying to come with a great recipe for an upcoming bake-off. When the day of the bake-off arrives, Ellie is very confident in her creation, but when her grandfather disappears from the event, nothing else matters. This novel will make an excellent addition to middle-grade libraries and classrooms.

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