Authors | Disability advocates | Promoting HOPE
by Cathy Wood
The story of Great Britain's Paralympian heroes is compelling. Across a broad spectrum of Paralympian sport, British athletes have excelled, winning a staggering 42 gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics and a second-place finish in the medals table. Against this backdrop of genuine sporting prowess, this book examines and celebrates the lives and achievements of British sportsmen and women.
Most of us expect to meander through the motions of love, marriage and (textbook) baby in the carriage, but once in a while life has something a little more special in store.
Special is an uplifting, candid companion for those in the early stages of navigating a child's disability, offering honest, reassuring and relatable insight into a largely unknown (and so, initially terrifying) part of our world.
It features antidotes to the obsessions at the forefront of a newly minted special-needs parent's mind: Why has this happened to me? Will I ever stop comparing my child to typical children? How will my relationship survive? Will I be able to work again? Should I have another baby? And the big one: What will my future look like?
Inspired by professional writer Melanie Dimmitt's own crash-landing into special-needs parenthood, and shaped by her conversations with parents of children with wide-ranging disabilities, Special shares real stories, expert guidance and simple coping strategies to soothe anyone whose life has taken an unexpected turn.
The amazing story of the thirteen-year-old surfer girl who lost her arm in a shark attack but never lost her faith -- and of her triumphant return to competitive surfing.
They say Bethany Hamilton has saltwater in her veins. How else could one explain the tremendous passion that drives her to surf? How else could one explain that nothing -- not even the loss of her arm in a horrific shark attack -- could come between her and the waves?
That Halloween morning in Kauai, Hawaii -- a glorious part of the world, where it's hard to deny the divine -- Bethany responded to the shark's stealth attack with the calm of a girl with God on her side. Pushing pain and panic aside, she immediately began to paddle with one arm, focusing on a single thought: "Get to the beach...." Rushed to the hospital, where her father, Tom Hamilton, was about to undergo knee surgery, Bethany found herself taking his spot in the O.R. It's the kind of coincidence that isn't mere coincidence to the Hamilton family, a clan whose motto could easily be "the family that surfs and prays together stays together." To them it was a sign someone had a greater plan than the one they'd been working on themselves -- which had been to scrape together whatever resources they could to help Bethany rise to the top of her sport. When the first thing Bethany wanted to know after surgery was "When can I surf again?" it became clear that her unfaltering spirit and determination were part of a greater story -- a tale of courage and faith that this modest and soft-spoken girl would come to share with the world.
Soul Surfer is a moving account of Bethany's life as a young surfer, her recovery in the wake of the shark attack, the adjustments she's made to her unique surfing style, her unprecedented bid for a top showing in the World Surfing Championships, and, most fundamentally, her belief in God. It is a story of girl power and spiritual grit that shows that the body is no more essential to surfing -- perhaps even less so -- than the soul.
Growing up in Hawaii, Bethany Hamilton loved to surf. But one day, she was in her favorite place, out on the waves, when a tiger shark suddenly attacked. Thirteen-year-old Bethany lost her left arm.
As she fought to recover, Bethany wondered: Would she ever surf again?
Follow Bethany as she got back on her board and fearlessly chased her surfing dreams. With the strength of her family and faith behind her, Bethany knew she could become not only a professional athlete, but a champion and a role model.
Regardless of whether they’ve heard of jazz or Art Tatum, young readers will appreciate how Parker uses simple, lyrical storytelling and colorful, energetic ink-and-wash illustrations to show the world as young Art Tatum might have seen it. Tatum came from modest beginnings and was nearly blind, but his passion for the piano and his acute memory for any sound that he heard drove him to become a virtuoso who was revered by both classical and jazz pianists alike. Included in the back matter is a biography and bibliography.
All her life, Penelope has been cheering on her friends from the sidelines. But she’s grown tired of being a benchwarmer. Now, all she wants is a chance to compete. With the help of her friends, she devises a plan to get her wheels in a race. When the day of reckoning arrives, will Penny have the courage to put all of her hopes and dreams on the finish line? Or will she continue to be a cheerleader?
by Amy Purdy
Amy Purdy, who inspired a nation on Dancing with the Stars and has been called a hero by Oprah Winfrey, reveals the intimate details of her triumphant comeback from the brink of death to making history as a Paralympic snowboarder.
In this poignant and uplifting memoir, Dancing With the Stars sensation Amy Purdy reveals the story of how losing her legs led her to find a spiritual path. When the Las Vegas native was just nineteen, she contracted bacterial meningitis and was given less than a two percent chance of survival. In a near-death experience, she saw three figures who told her: “You can come with us, or you can stay. No matter what happens in your life, it’s all going to make sense in the end.” In that moment, Amy chose to live.
Her glimpse of the afterlife—coupled with a mysterious premonition she’d had a month before —became the defining experiences that put Amy’s life on a new trajectory after her legs had to be amputated. She wouldn’t just beat meningitis and walk again; she would go on to create a life filled with bold adventures, big dreams, and boundless vitality—and share that spirit with the world. In 2014, Amy—the only competitor, male or female, with two prosthetic legs—claimed a bronze medal for the U.S. Paralympic team in adaptive snowboarding. She then became a contestant on season eighteen of Dancing With the Stars, and viewers were captivated as the girl with bionic legs managed to out-dance her competitors all the way to the finale.
Amy’s journey is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the capacity we all have to dream bigger, defy expectations, and rewrite our stories. Amy was given a second chance for a reason—to use her life to inspire others. Her powerful memoir urges us to live life to the fullest, because we are all a lot more capable than we could ever imagine.
United States Paralympian and American Record Holder Cody Jones creates a professionally imaginative and silly book about disabilities and the human spirit.
Teacher and Mom Approved!
by Danny Jordan
Rae is like many five year olds with one BIG exception: she has a super-secret superpower. Unlike her limb difference, which is visible for all to see, her superpower is something she has never shown anyone before. But it’s her first day of school and her classmates are in need. Will she keep her power to herself…or use it to help her new friends?