Life Happens Next

May 15, 2012
Trueman skates the edge of fantasy as he puts readers' hearts through a workout in this sequel to Stuck in Neutral (2000). Shawn is completely locked out of his physical body by cerebral palsy, but inside he's a smart, sarcastic and (generally) emotionally stable 14-year-old. He takes up his narrative only days after surviving his well-meaning father's aborted mercy killing (Cruise Control, 2004) and hasty departure. He's already past that, though. Between rapturous affirmations that he's developed "over-the-top, teenaged-love-junkie, mac-daddy-extreme hotz" for his sister's BF Ally and more dispassionate descriptions of diaper changes, he notes with mixed feelings the arrival of his mother's cousin Debi, a newly orphaned adult with Down syndrome, and her large and excitable dog, Rusty. Inspired by real members of the author's family, Debi and Shawn are characters whose conditions are portrayed with credible accuracy--but who also display enough self-awareness, emotional range and human insight to lift them well past any sort of typecasting. On the other hand, unlike the rest of Shawn's loving family, Debi and even Rusty somehow turn out to be able to tell what's going on in his head, and in a further credulity-straining development, Debi shows up, disability free, in his dreams after a sudden loss. A winning central and supporting cast provide strong compensation for a plot that seems overly worked and too tidily resolved. (afterword) (Fiction. 11-14)

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December 1, 2012
Grades 8-12 This sequel to Stuck in Neutral (2001) is short but packs a punch. Readers will certainly remember Shawn McDaniel, who is profoundly disabled. He is unable to speak or control his bodily functions, and he can't make anyone understand that despite appearances, he is something of a genius, aware of everything that goes on around him. Written in the same smart voice, the book allows readers to see life through Shawn's eyes, not only the frustrations but also the gratitude for what life has to offer him; for example, a mother who loves him and, yes, clean socks. Then the unexpected happens: a relative with Down syndrome, functioning at the level of a five-year-old, is taken in (along with her dog, Rusty) by Shawn's mother, and for the first time, Shawn feels like there are two souls who understand him. Shawn's grand mal seizures allow the book to take a mystical turn, which provides a satisfactory way of completing Shawn's story, especially for those who've long waited to learn what happened next.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)