Jewish Holocaust - Background Builder

The Holocaust and Holocaust denial from Henry Hollis

In preparation of our next book "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas", I have uploaded these two multimedia files to help build background!

The Running Dream by Wendelin VanDrannen

This is a beautifully written story about a young girl, Jessica, who is a star track athlete.  She is one of the top runners in her county and is sure to get a college scholarship, but on the way home from a track meet the bus gets in a horrible accident.  One team mate is dead and Jessica is missing her leg from the knee down.  Based on a true story, the tale takes you through Jessica's road to recovery both physically and mentally.

She returns to school, initially in a wheelchair, and befriends Rosa, a girl with Cerebral Palsy.  Rosa's unique outlook on life, gifts Jessica.  Jessica's old track team run fundraisers in an effort to help purchase a "Running Leg" for Jessica, while her family is onset with mounting bills, that the school district refuses to cover.  As she becomes whole again, she devises a plan to gift Rosa with something special.

This is a very heartwarming and beautifully written story.  The surprise ending will leave you with hope and inspiration.  I think this a great book for anybody!


Links

Childhood Amputation

Psychological Implications of Amputation

Running Dream - video trailer - Youtube - this is a short video of the basic premise of the book "The Running Dream".  Most of the video is spent building background for the main character, Jessica.

Wendelin VanDraanen - Biography - This is a brief biography of the author of "The Running Dream" developed by Scholastic.

Other Books by Wendelin VanDrannen - A list by Scholastic books of some other titles written by Wendelin VanDraanen