Clea can't control her thoughts. She knows she has to do her homework... but she gets distracted. She knows she can't just say whatever thought comes into her head... but sometimes she can't help herself. She know she needs to focus... but how can she do that when the people around her are always chewing gum loudly or making other annoying noises? It's starting to be a problem — not just in school, but when Clea's playing chess or just hanging out with her best friend. When the seventh-grader fails one too many tests, her parents take her to be tested, and she finds out that she has ADHD, which means her attention is all over the place instead of where it needs to be.
Clea knows life can't continue the way it's been going. She's just not sure how you can fix a problem that's all in your head. But that's what she's going to have to do, to find a way to focus. With Focused, Alyson Gerber, the author of Braced, explores even further how, when life gives you a challenge, the best way to face it is with an open mind, an open heart, and the open support of the people around you.
When teachers and the school counselor suggest her struggles may be related to ADHD, Clea is resistant to diagnosis and treatment, considering it a black mark and further evidence that she is somehow broken. Through it all a friendship blooms with Sanam, another chess teammate, who encourages Clea with her own story of learning differences and her persistent optimism. Though not a biographical story, Gerber’s tender first-person narrative perfectly resonates with the ADHD experience, which she knows firsthand.... An accurate and compassionate picture of growing up with ADHD is the icing on the cake of this well-told novel." — Kirkus Reviews
Recommended Age | 10 - 13 |
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Author | Alyson Gerber |
ISBN | 1338185977 |
Publication Date | Mar 26, 2019 |
Publisher | Scholastic Press |
Language | English |