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Out of My Mind #2
Out of My Heart
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20 copies available
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Melody faces her fears to follow her passion in this sequel to Out of My Mind.
Melody is a year older, and a year braver. And now with her Medi-talker, she feels nothing’s out of her reach, not even summer camp. There have to be camps for differently-abled kids like her, and she’s going to sleuth one out. A place where she can trek through a forest, fly on a zip line, and even ride on a horse! A place where maybe she really can finally make a real friend, make her own decisions, and even do things on her own—the dream!
By the light of flickering campfires and the power of thunderstorms, through the terror of unexpected creatures in cabins and the first sparkle of a crush, Melody’s about to discover how brave and strong she really is.
Melody is a year older, and a year braver. And now with her Medi-talker, she feels nothing’s out of her reach, not even summer camp. There have to be camps for differently-abled kids like her, and she’s going to sleuth one out. A place where she can trek through a forest, fly on a zip line, and even ride on a horse! A place where maybe she really can finally make a real friend, make her own decisions, and even do things on her own—the dream!
By the light of flickering campfires and the power of thunderstorms, through the terror of unexpected creatures in cabins and the first sparkle of a crush, Melody’s about to discover how brave and strong she really is.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published November 9, 2021
About the author
Sharon M. Draper
47 books3,451 followersSharon M. Draper is a professional educator as well as an accomplished writer. She has been honored as the National Teacher of the Year, is a five-time winner of the Coretta Scott King Literary Award, and is a New York Times bestselling author. She lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,132 reviews
November 2, 2021
Have you been wondering what happened to Melody? Well, she went to camp. Camp Green Glades is a magical place. Full of the activities that you would find at most summer camps with great attention to keeping campers of all abilities safe. When Melody arrives, she meets her camp counselor buddy Trinity. Melody is not sure she wants to stay and Trinity does such a lovely job of encouraging her throughout the week while also pushing Melody to try new things. The reader spends the week with Melody and accompanies as she grows and surprises herself time after time. It is so inspiring to see a camp like this in action and visualize all the joy it brings to the campers and their families. For Melody especially, there is healing and growth after her tough year with the Whiz Kids. If you haven't read Out of My Mind yet, I encourage you to pick it up soon and then read this one right after. Highly recommended!
Thank you to Atheneum and Edelweiss+ for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Atheneum and Edelweiss+ for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.
February 26, 2022
I liked this book but I don’t think it was necessary. It was nice to see Melody thrive and make real friends. She really broke out of her shell and I was happy to see this happen. But the charm from the first book was missing and I was cringing at some of the writing choices. The author tried to use slang but it wasn’t executed well and it dragged the pace at times. The messages in this were still of course great. I have no complaints there. I liked the new characters but it was hard to differentiate them at times. I really enjoyed Athena, she was great. Seeing Melody go through all these new experiences for the first time was so much fun. She was always so unsure at first but then it quickly became a new favorite activity. I don’t know if I would readily recommend this book because I have very conflicting feelings about it. I am not even positive with what to rate it.
December 27, 2021
It was so good to see Melody attend camp, just like all the other kids at school. Just like every other kid that can do these things without a care in the world.
Melody is not even yet a teenager, but she is a very smart young woman. She is gutsy, affable and very switched on.
This is a great story for young readers, and of course, readers like me that fell in love with Melody in book number one. It was some time ago, and there were a few references to her experience of attending a school competition where she was left behind by her peers, and the simple concept of not fitting in. This could be read as a stand alone, but I think better read in sequence.
The author writes an easy to read and flowing tale of the new found freedoms experienced by tweens at a camp for kids that are not as able bodied as their peers, kids that wouldn't normally be able to have this freedom and experience. I felt it was a little bogged down in the minuate of the every day routine, but I loved that the kids could do all the fun stuff - horse back riding, swimming, flying fox, dancing, art.
Melody's family were very lovely and supportive, the process of camp application showed us to be a very serious one. They were apprehensive to let her go but she loved every moment.
So Melody with her funky wheelchair and sparkles, her fiery personality and unreliable limbs got to learn about life and find friends, all those simple things us able bodied folk take for granted.
This is a talented author, well done to Sharon M. Draper for a well written and thoroughly researched book.
Melody is not even yet a teenager, but she is a very smart young woman. She is gutsy, affable and very switched on.
This is a great story for young readers, and of course, readers like me that fell in love with Melody in book number one. It was some time ago, and there were a few references to her experience of attending a school competition where she was left behind by her peers, and the simple concept of not fitting in. This could be read as a stand alone, but I think better read in sequence.
The author writes an easy to read and flowing tale of the new found freedoms experienced by tweens at a camp for kids that are not as able bodied as their peers, kids that wouldn't normally be able to have this freedom and experience. I felt it was a little bogged down in the minuate of the every day routine, but I loved that the kids could do all the fun stuff - horse back riding, swimming, flying fox, dancing, art.
Melody's family were very lovely and supportive, the process of camp application showed us to be a very serious one. They were apprehensive to let her go but she loved every moment.
So Melody with her funky wheelchair and sparkles, her fiery personality and unreliable limbs got to learn about life and find friends, all those simple things us able bodied folk take for granted.
This is a talented author, well done to Sharon M. Draper for a well written and thoroughly researched book.
September 7, 2022
Update: Uh, Melody's not Black. All of us who thought she was Black are wrong. Just ignore the random (outdated) Black American slang and whatnot and you'll be fine. 🥴
Hi. I, like Melody, was born with a physical disability. I, like Melody, use wheelchairs to get around and other medical devices to survive and thrive. Melody and I share other things in common as well like having been to a summer camp for youth with disabilities and so forth... I hope you can see why I would want to read a book like this.
I read Out of My Mind as a high schooler, and while it definitely wasn't perfect I also didn't leave hating it. For some reason, I set out to reread the book to see how things held up now that I'm 25 and can reflect more on my life as a preteen girl. I don't know how, but I picked up the wrong book... Intrigued, I kept reading it.
Let me just say: I hated this book. It sucked. It really did. There was ableism all over the place, and it simply isn't a book that'll uplift youth with disabilities.
Here are a million reasons why this book sucked. The reasons are many, so just pick a few to read:
• After having had Melody speak against euphemisms like "special needs," the book describes her as "differently-abled."
• Barely into the book, Melody describes a neighbor helping her "shut down the pity party" about her having a disability. ...Yes, because people with disabilities are mobile pity parties who need help to not be depressed, and if we're depressed about anything obviously it has to do with our disabilities! We totally need to support that stereotype.
• The author has Melody note that cerebral palsy is "not a disease," that it isn't contagious, and that the "mental part of her brain" works. I don't really think the author cared about how youth with disabilities would feel reading this book.
• Melody always says that she tells her AAC device what to say, instead of naturally saying "I said thank you."
• The author has the main character infantilize being fed.
• There's literally not one moment where the main character does not compare her abilities to the abilities of people who aren't disabled. It's incredibly saddening.
• The author has the main character comment "Her braids were tight! Not one bit of frizz!" on her counselor's box braids... Yeah, because people with box braids are known to wake up with messy hair?
• The author has the main character infantilize needing help washing up.
• The author has the main character worry about having messy hair upon waking up. You mean to tell me that a family sent a little Black girl to an away camp for an entire week without having put her hair up in a protective style? You mean to tell me that they sent her to an away camp for a whole week... trusting that someone would know how to do her hair? ...I shared braid spray with the other Black girl at the camp I went to.
• The author has the main character say "kids like me" to describe disabled kids about a million times... It's as if the Boogeyman were going to appear if Melody were to say anything related to the word "disability" three times in a row, or even once.
• The author has the main character think that she has no right to comment on someone having done something wrong on the sole basis that she is not physically capable of doing said thing.
• The author has the main character think "He didn't seem to be the least bit phased to be asked a question by a machine" in response to a boat captain responding to Melody who communicates via an AAC device. The boat captain was being asked a question by Melody, not by a device...
• The author has the main character comment on another camper's movement by saying "She was wheelchair-swaying to the rhythm." Just, ugh...
• The author writes Melody as a "wheelchair expert" yet makes Melody unaware that chairs can have custom colors, and of the fact that standing wheelchairs exist.
• The author has a character named Santiago randomly say a single Spanish word (just so we, the readers, can learn that she knew what the word meant). Santiago also played "salsa music" from his AAC device. Santiago doesn't do anything else, he's just a random Hispanic kid doing... Hispanic kid tingz.
• There's an odd wheelchair slide that's... somehow not at all a ramp.
• The book references dated music for no reason other than to show how "hip" the author is to youth, I guess.
• The author gave Melody, her crush and her counselor synesthesia. (Totally realistic.) It's written as a condition that's only relevant when it's fun.
• The restrooms are far away from the cabins at a camp made for people with disabilities... I have to laugh. The restrooms not being in the cabins are simply used as a plot device.
• Melody, lamenting on life with a disability, says "No one had ever wanted me on their team for anything!"
• Melody, about having to use a wheelchair, says "It sucks scissors sometimes." Yes, preteens totally talk like this.
• A preteen boy, reacting to another boy's behavior: "Man you are seriously lacking any chill." Yep, mmhmm, the author total has preteen speech down.
• After horseback riding, Melody's counselor gets off the horse that they were both on, knowing that her legs kick due to her cerebral palsy... There are no staff nearby and Melody's counselor is supposed to get her off of the horse herself. Yes, because a camp like this would totally allow one person transfers. Totally safe dude!
• Melody, after having zipped down the zip line: "The zip line is the bomb!"
• The author has the girls in the main character's cabin talk about traumatic experiences from ableism when they finally get to have girl talk together.
• The author has the main character use the term "nutzo."
• The author wrote that the main character put her AAC device "on speaker." ...Girl what? It's not a cellphone! The only time her AAC device didn't speak out loud was when she was sending an email and text.
• Melody, a preteen girl: "We rock!"
There were some other weird things that happened like Melody saying another camper looked like they had Down Syndrome, and even Melody's own parents being hesitant upon seeing that her counselor seemed to have a disability herself.
If I would've read this when I were Melody's age, I would've gotten so many mixed signals. This book reminds me of adults who would say things like "She might be in that wheelchair but she's smart!" and would encourage me to take those statements as badges of honor. Mostly, the book would've reinforced untrue stereotypes that society already tells me about disabled people. Thankfully, I know not to listen to these things. I especially know that people with physical disabilities don't have to overcompensate or say negative things about other types of disabilities just to feel better. I know that youth with disabilities don't exist to inspire pity. That they would like to read books that feature people with disabilities that aren't depressing, infantilizing or ableist. Books where the main character's main (er, only) personality trait isn't just a response to ableism they've experienced. Books that are just... better.
I really don't know what happened. Not sure if the first book was this bad or my eyes are just opened now that I've read the sequel.
Meh. On to the next book!
Hi. I, like Melody, was born with a physical disability. I, like Melody, use wheelchairs to get around and other medical devices to survive and thrive. Melody and I share other things in common as well like having been to a summer camp for youth with disabilities and so forth... I hope you can see why I would want to read a book like this.
I read Out of My Mind as a high schooler, and while it definitely wasn't perfect I also didn't leave hating it. For some reason, I set out to reread the book to see how things held up now that I'm 25 and can reflect more on my life as a preteen girl. I don't know how, but I picked up the wrong book... Intrigued, I kept reading it.
Let me just say: I hated this book. It sucked. It really did. There was ableism all over the place, and it simply isn't a book that'll uplift youth with disabilities.
Here are a million reasons why this book sucked. The reasons are many, so just pick a few to read:
• After having had Melody speak against euphemisms like "special needs," the book describes her as "differently-abled."
• Barely into the book, Melody describes a neighbor helping her "shut down the pity party" about her having a disability. ...Yes, because people with disabilities are mobile pity parties who need help to not be depressed, and if we're depressed about anything obviously it has to do with our disabilities! We totally need to support that stereotype.
• The author has Melody note that cerebral palsy is "not a disease," that it isn't contagious, and that the "mental part of her brain" works. I don't really think the author cared about how youth with disabilities would feel reading this book.
• Melody always says that she tells her AAC device what to say, instead of naturally saying "I said thank you."
• The author has the main character infantilize being fed.
• There's literally not one moment where the main character does not compare her abilities to the abilities of people who aren't disabled. It's incredibly saddening.
• The author has the main character comment "Her braids were tight! Not one bit of frizz!" on her counselor's box braids... Yeah, because people with box braids are known to wake up with messy hair?
• The author has the main character infantilize needing help washing up.
• The author has the main character worry about having messy hair upon waking up. You mean to tell me that a family sent a little Black girl to an away camp for an entire week without having put her hair up in a protective style? You mean to tell me that they sent her to an away camp for a whole week... trusting that someone would know how to do her hair? ...I shared braid spray with the other Black girl at the camp I went to.
• The author has the main character say "kids like me" to describe disabled kids about a million times... It's as if the Boogeyman were going to appear if Melody were to say anything related to the word "disability" three times in a row, or even once.
• The author has the main character think that she has no right to comment on someone having done something wrong on the sole basis that she is not physically capable of doing said thing.
• The author has the main character think "He didn't seem to be the least bit phased to be asked a question by a machine" in response to a boat captain responding to Melody who communicates via an AAC device. The boat captain was being asked a question by Melody, not by a device...
• The author has the main character comment on another camper's movement by saying "She was wheelchair-swaying to the rhythm." Just, ugh...
• The author writes Melody as a "wheelchair expert" yet makes Melody unaware that chairs can have custom colors, and of the fact that standing wheelchairs exist.
• The author has a character named Santiago randomly say a single Spanish word (just so we, the readers, can learn that she knew what the word meant). Santiago also played "salsa music" from his AAC device. Santiago doesn't do anything else, he's just a random Hispanic kid doing... Hispanic kid tingz.
• There's an odd wheelchair slide that's... somehow not at all a ramp.
• The book references dated music for no reason other than to show how "hip" the author is to youth, I guess.
• The author gave Melody, her crush and her counselor synesthesia. (Totally realistic.) It's written as a condition that's only relevant when it's fun.
• The restrooms are far away from the cabins at a camp made for people with disabilities... I have to laugh. The restrooms not being in the cabins are simply used as a plot device.
• Melody, lamenting on life with a disability, says "No one had ever wanted me on their team for anything!"
• Melody, about having to use a wheelchair, says "It sucks scissors sometimes." Yes, preteens totally talk like this.
• A preteen boy, reacting to another boy's behavior: "Man you are seriously lacking any chill." Yep, mmhmm, the author total has preteen speech down.
• After horseback riding, Melody's counselor gets off the horse that they were both on, knowing that her legs kick due to her cerebral palsy... There are no staff nearby and Melody's counselor is supposed to get her off of the horse herself. Yes, because a camp like this would totally allow one person transfers. Totally safe dude!
• Melody, after having zipped down the zip line: "The zip line is the bomb!"
• The author has the girls in the main character's cabin talk about traumatic experiences from ableism when they finally get to have girl talk together.
• The author has the main character use the term "nutzo."
• The author wrote that the main character put her AAC device "on speaker." ...Girl what? It's not a cellphone! The only time her AAC device didn't speak out loud was when she was sending an email and text.
• Melody, a preteen girl: "We rock!"
There were some other weird things that happened like Melody saying another camper looked like they had Down Syndrome, and even Melody's own parents being hesitant upon seeing that her counselor seemed to have a disability herself.
If I would've read this when I were Melody's age, I would've gotten so many mixed signals. This book reminds me of adults who would say things like "She might be in that wheelchair but she's smart!" and would encourage me to take those statements as badges of honor. Mostly, the book would've reinforced untrue stereotypes that society already tells me about disabled people. Thankfully, I know not to listen to these things. I especially know that people with physical disabilities don't have to overcompensate or say negative things about other types of disabilities just to feel better. I know that youth with disabilities don't exist to inspire pity. That they would like to read books that feature people with disabilities that aren't depressing, infantilizing or ableist. Books where the main character's main (er, only) personality trait isn't just a response to ableism they've experienced. Books that are just... better.
I really don't know what happened. Not sure if the first book was this bad or my eyes are just opened now that I've read the sequel.
Meh. On to the next book!
February 2, 2022
4 stars
I was so happy to get back into the mind of Melody. This wasn’t quite as emotional as the first but left me with such a happy heart. I think these are such fantastic middle grade novels!
I was so happy to get back into the mind of Melody. This wasn’t quite as emotional as the first but left me with such a happy heart. I think these are such fantastic middle grade novels!
Audio book source: Libby
Story Rating: 4 stars
Narrators: Sisi Aisha Johnson
Narration Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Middle Grade
Length: 7h 21m
November 15, 2022
4 stars
Wasn't AS amazing as the first one but still so amazing!!!
Wasn't AS amazing as the first one but still so amazing!!!
September 18, 2021
Our beloved Melody Monroe is back and much more grown up. Remember her from Out Of My Mind where she begins to conquers her body? Melody was trapped in her cerebral palsy body and we watched her come to life as she emerged through her persistence and the gift of technology.
In Out of My Heart, Melody is 12 and “she has basically overcome all the school-related problems that she can with her limitations.” But wait, you haven’t seen “nothing” yet. She decides she, like all kids her age, wants goes to summer camp. At first this seems impossible for a person like a Melody. But it is the 21st century and limitations are there to be overcome. Her loving parents do locate a camp that is designed for kids with severe handicaps. Reader thinks, really... so this is a babysitting type situation? Oh no no no, keep reading.. Melody is excited and of course apprehensive as she prepares to make the two hour trip from the security of her home for the next week. She’s in a completely different environment, for the very first time, without her support group. This camp, is highly designed for children with disabilities, Melody immediately meets a fiercely protective ally in her one-on-one camp counselor Trinity, whom Draper describes as “kind and loving and no-nonsense.” In addition to activities like horseback riding and ziplining (the details of which Draper carefully researched), campers attend a nightly campfire, where Heart felt discussions necessary to 12 year olds take place. Melody makes friends, she even meets a boy who makes her heart flutter. Her camp stay is not without some problems, but it proves to be all and much more she had hoped.
Do not anticipate action in this book rather it is about the joy a severely handicapped girl gets to experience.
By reading more about Draper’s newest book, II learned that Inspiration for the book’s cover came from “the idea of a firefly being set free from a jar, lighting up as it flies free. This is the perfect metaphor for how Melody herself grows and how her own inner joy brightens as she bravely undertakes new experiences at the camp.
In Out of My Heart, Melody is 12 and “she has basically overcome all the school-related problems that she can with her limitations.” But wait, you haven’t seen “nothing” yet. She decides she, like all kids her age, wants goes to summer camp. At first this seems impossible for a person like a Melody. But it is the 21st century and limitations are there to be overcome. Her loving parents do locate a camp that is designed for kids with severe handicaps. Reader thinks, really... so this is a babysitting type situation? Oh no no no, keep reading.. Melody is excited and of course apprehensive as she prepares to make the two hour trip from the security of her home for the next week. She’s in a completely different environment, for the very first time, without her support group. This camp, is highly designed for children with disabilities, Melody immediately meets a fiercely protective ally in her one-on-one camp counselor Trinity, whom Draper describes as “kind and loving and no-nonsense.” In addition to activities like horseback riding and ziplining (the details of which Draper carefully researched), campers attend a nightly campfire, where Heart felt discussions necessary to 12 year olds take place. Melody makes friends, she even meets a boy who makes her heart flutter. Her camp stay is not without some problems, but it proves to be all and much more she had hoped.
Do not anticipate action in this book rather it is about the joy a severely handicapped girl gets to experience.
By reading more about Draper’s newest book, II learned that Inspiration for the book’s cover came from “the idea of a firefly being set free from a jar, lighting up as it flies free. This is the perfect metaphor for how Melody herself grows and how her own inner joy brightens as she bravely undertakes new experiences at the camp.
August 20, 2022
So great to see Melody back in action, and nice that the plot didn't revolve around other kids being garbage to her. This time, she's headed off to camp, and I adored the other campers and especially her unflappable counselor, Trinity. I did feel that it got a bit pedantic: at times it was almost like a brochure for similar camps, explaining how they can adapt swimming, riding, zip lining to the campers' various needs. I also wonder, as I did in the first book, that Melody's very engaged parents (and her mom is a NURSE) seem to have no idea that such options are possible for her? My nephew needed speech therapy and they still send them brochures for horseback riding and anything else you can imagine. I know that it serves the narrative for this to all be new and at times overwhelming for Melody, but it makes me, as a parent, side eye her parents!
But seriously, so cute. A great summer camp book, with all the right details like skunk run-ins and even young love!
But seriously, so cute. A great summer camp book, with all the right details like skunk run-ins and even young love!
December 1, 2021
First sentence: The firefly hovered over the back of my hand, then landed--slowly, effortlessly.
Premise/plot: Melody returns in Sharon Draper's Out of My Heart. In this sequel, Melody, our heroine, goes to camp. That's it. All of it. She. Goes. To. Camp. Three-hundred-and-fifty-two pages of Melody at camp.
My thoughts: I remembered Out of My Mind fondly. I remember finding it super compelling. Melody was a great character I felt a connection with. I cared about her story--every minute of it. Never bored, always engaged. Not so with this [unnecessary] sequel. Out of My Heart reminded me of Race For Your Life Charlie Brown. I jest. Mostly. Those that know me know that is my code for BORING, boring, super-boring. Both are set at camp. Both are incredibly boring. It isn't that I am so opposed to the book having a sequel. It's just that I think that everything I loved about the first book was missing in the sequel. The book read like a brochure--maybe. I haven't read that many brochures about camp to be honest.
February 7, 2023
5 stars
Amazing - a must read for people of all ages! I feel like I went to camp with this incredible cast of characters!
Amazing - a must read for people of all ages! I feel like I went to camp with this incredible cast of characters!
January 30, 2022
This was my daughter’s book club read with her friends (4th grade). They all loved this book and rated it a 5 star book. I rated it a 4 star as I thought the book was a bit lengthy. However, I was crying at the end and thought the book had a great message about the importance of friendship.
February 10, 2022
FOUR POINT FIVE-SEVEN STARS
It’s been 12 years since the first book about Melody was written; Out of My Mind. Melody is back and this time she’s off to a week-long overnight summer camp. She’ll be 2-hours away from her home and family.
At camp, Melody is around other kids who are also differently-abled. All the camp kids get to experience everything that other summer camps offer from swimming to ziplining to horseback riding, among other fun activities.
The friendship and bonds formed at camp will be something Melody will carry with her.
This was a great story and nice to see Melody around kids who understand the struggles she was going through because they too had their own things to overcome.
OUT OF MY HEART
● Melody
● middle-grade
● cerebral palsy
● non-verbal
● summer camp for differently-abled kids
It’s been 12 years since the first book about Melody was written; Out of My Mind. Melody is back and this time she’s off to a week-long overnight summer camp. She’ll be 2-hours away from her home and family.
At camp, Melody is around other kids who are also differently-abled. All the camp kids get to experience everything that other summer camps offer from swimming to ziplining to horseback riding, among other fun activities.
The friendship and bonds formed at camp will be something Melody will carry with her.
This was a great story and nice to see Melody around kids who understand the struggles she was going through because they too had their own things to overcome.
OUT OF MY HEART
● Melody
● middle-grade
● cerebral palsy
● non-verbal
● summer camp for differently-abled kids
Audiobook source: Libby
Narrator: Sisi Aisha Johnson
Length: 7H 21M
June 7, 2023
This book completely forgot who the main character was and nothing even happened in it. Every single problem that occurred was solved within the page. There was no plot no revelations no huge character development. Just a 12 year old girl goes to camp and has fun!
Melody felt entirely different. In the first book her narration was very smart and poetic sounding and in this book she just sounded like a silly twelve year old, with lots of Omigoshs in it.
There were loads of instances with music where she never even mentioned what colors it was. And in book one it clearly states, multiple times that she has photographic memory. This book.. "I hope I remembered some of these songs; I want to add them to my playlist"
Melody felt entirely different. In the first book her narration was very smart and poetic sounding and in this book she just sounded like a silly twelve year old, with lots of Omigoshs in it.
There were loads of instances with music where she never even mentioned what colors it was. And in book one it clearly states, multiple times that she has photographic memory. This book.. "I hope I remembered some of these songs; I want to add them to my playlist"
March 21, 2022
For me, this didn't compare to Out of My Mind.
March 26, 2024
I read Out of My Mind when it was newish, and I was 11 or 12. I was only beginning, through the blogs of Mel Baggs (z"l) and Julia Bascom, among others, to understand disability as a political orientation, and not yet fully able to identify that political impulse in myself. I remember, vividly, the moment I read the final lines of Out of My Mind. That scene of abandonment hit me so viscerally that it is still lodged in my head half my life later. At 25, out of the hundreds, likely thousands (if my goodreads is any indication!), of books I've read between then and now, the gutted, horrified sensation of watching Melody face this everyday, catastrophic cruelty feels fresh. It came rushing back when I saw Out of My Heart on Libby. I had to know what happened next.
Out of My Heart is a stunningly complex, hopeful, honest, and multifaceted portrayal of disabled adolescence. I did a bit of google-stalking, and it seems that Draper does not identify with disability herself, with further impresses me given this book's richness. In it, we follow Melody, a tween with cerebral palsy juggling the well-intentioned helicoptering of her family with the desire to live her own life, and, crucially, make her own mistakes on her own terms.
She gets this opportunity when she finds a camp –– think Crip Camp for the 21st century! –– specifically for disabled kids of all stripes. Matched with a counselor/PA named Trinity and a handful of bunkmates, Melody has a set of experiences that brilliantly exceed the much-hallowed "normal camp experience." Indeed, a theme of this book (which somehow manages to be instructive but never polemic) is that disabled kids are not, in fact, just like other kids; their insights, needs, and contributions are unique and must be celebrated as such. For the first time in her life, Melody's needs are the default, her bunkmates variously needing help with eating, using the bathroom, bathing, and moving between places. Some are intellectually disabled; others touch-averse; others on special diets. The reader is reminded throughout the book of these everyday realities without ever seeing a spectacle. Melody is an astute, reflective observer even in the moments that she is confused and unsure about the world and her place in it.
Something else remarkable about this text, which I have very rarely seen (and even less so in a book for young readers that can generally be described as positive, hopeful, and uplifting) is the celebration of noncompliance. I won't get into details so as to avoid spoilers, but will say that Out of My Heart depicts disabled kids as rebellious, crafty, and clever; getting into trouble is worth a reprimand. Their desires for autonomy, while initially resisted both by parents and camp staff, are respected and engaged with open communication. I can't help but think about the disabled kids picking up this book and seeing perhaps their first example of respectful communication between disabled youth and their adult caregivers, seeing their peers "misbehave" in ways that are explicitly worth it, forming bonds from shared experiences of not playing by the rules.
Draper's approach to autonomy and interdependence in this book is deeply nuanced, with Melody and her friends neither supercrips nor passive objects of the abled gaze. They are kids with profound interiority, at a level rarely found in even depictions of abled/sane/neuronormative children. They have desires for love, community, and freedom sometimes at odds with the adults around them. And (this is crucial) they are moving through a space in which they are loved and supported regardless.
So. Somehow, this book is even better than Out of My Mind, due, I assume, to Draper's research into disability community and culture even more visible today than it was back in 2010. What results is a model for how all writers should be writing about (with and to, not for and around) young disabled people. Seriously, bravo.
Out of My Heart is a stunningly complex, hopeful, honest, and multifaceted portrayal of disabled adolescence. I did a bit of google-stalking, and it seems that Draper does not identify with disability herself, with further impresses me given this book's richness. In it, we follow Melody, a tween with cerebral palsy juggling the well-intentioned helicoptering of her family with the desire to live her own life, and, crucially, make her own mistakes on her own terms.
She gets this opportunity when she finds a camp –– think Crip Camp for the 21st century! –– specifically for disabled kids of all stripes. Matched with a counselor/PA named Trinity and a handful of bunkmates, Melody has a set of experiences that brilliantly exceed the much-hallowed "normal camp experience." Indeed, a theme of this book (which somehow manages to be instructive but never polemic) is that disabled kids are not, in fact, just like other kids; their insights, needs, and contributions are unique and must be celebrated as such. For the first time in her life, Melody's needs are the default, her bunkmates variously needing help with eating, using the bathroom, bathing, and moving between places. Some are intellectually disabled; others touch-averse; others on special diets. The reader is reminded throughout the book of these everyday realities without ever seeing a spectacle. Melody is an astute, reflective observer even in the moments that she is confused and unsure about the world and her place in it.
Something else remarkable about this text, which I have very rarely seen (and even less so in a book for young readers that can generally be described as positive, hopeful, and uplifting) is the celebration of noncompliance. I won't get into details so as to avoid spoilers, but will say that Out of My Heart depicts disabled kids as rebellious, crafty, and clever; getting into trouble is worth a reprimand. Their desires for autonomy, while initially resisted both by parents and camp staff, are respected and engaged with open communication. I can't help but think about the disabled kids picking up this book and seeing perhaps their first example of respectful communication between disabled youth and their adult caregivers, seeing their peers "misbehave" in ways that are explicitly worth it, forming bonds from shared experiences of not playing by the rules.
Draper's approach to autonomy and interdependence in this book is deeply nuanced, with Melody and her friends neither supercrips nor passive objects of the abled gaze. They are kids with profound interiority, at a level rarely found in even depictions of abled/sane/neuronormative children. They have desires for love, community, and freedom sometimes at odds with the adults around them. And (this is crucial) they are moving through a space in which they are loved and supported regardless.
So. Somehow, this book is even better than Out of My Mind, due, I assume, to Draper's research into disability community and culture even more visible today than it was back in 2010. What results is a model for how all writers should be writing about (with and to, not for and around) young disabled people. Seriously, bravo.
June 15, 2022
Melody goes to summer camp for kids with special abilities. She meets other kids with different disabilities and is able to participate in activities she never dreamed of.
December 19, 2021
I know a lot of people will love this book - I just have to say that it was not for me and that's okay. I had really enjoyed Out of My Mind, but this one just didn't have the same hold on me. I think overall it felt much more like a story for kids instead of one that is for kids but also appealing to adults. And that's probably the intention! I think kids will enjoy this one a lot, but this is my review ;)
Melody gets the chance to go to summer camp, so a lot of the story is about her making friends and doing camp related things like learning how to swim, horseback riding, etc. There was a lot of friendship stuff and crushes and dances and all that sort of thing. It was just a bit young for me and overall didn't have the same depth that the first one did.
There were a few things that did stand out to me though, especially when the girls at the camp finally have a chance to talk on their own without the counselors around and they share all of their stories of the difficulties they've faced. One that really hit me is a girl in a wheelchair who was on the third floor at school when they had a fire drill and there was a substitute teacher that day. The sub doesn't know how to get her down to the bottom floor so she leaves in the classroom saying it's a drill and they'll be right back. I think the story was intended to show that there was not enough compassion, but I think it's an important commentary on a lot of things, but especially education. I think more teachers would want to do what is right for their kids but being a sub is hard, really hard - I've done it. We were paid very little money and had basically no training. I would have had no idea what to do in that situation either. And while I may have handled it a bit differently I can understand that point of view. So this is definitely getting off topic but I think teachers and subs need more training, more money, more support so they know and can do what is right.
Anyway! I listened to this one on audiobook just like the first one and the narrator has an engaging and unique voice that I think fits Melody's personality well. I ended up speeding it up a lot though just because I felt the story was so slow and it never really grabbed me. Others I'm sure will feel differently.
Melody gets the chance to go to summer camp, so a lot of the story is about her making friends and doing camp related things like learning how to swim, horseback riding, etc. There was a lot of friendship stuff and crushes and dances and all that sort of thing. It was just a bit young for me and overall didn't have the same depth that the first one did.
There were a few things that did stand out to me though, especially when the girls at the camp finally have a chance to talk on their own without the counselors around and they share all of their stories of the difficulties they've faced. One that really hit me is a girl in a wheelchair who was on the third floor at school when they had a fire drill and there was a substitute teacher that day. The sub doesn't know how to get her down to the bottom floor so she leaves in the classroom saying it's a drill and they'll be right back. I think the story was intended to show that there was not enough compassion, but I think it's an important commentary on a lot of things, but especially education. I think more teachers would want to do what is right for their kids but being a sub is hard, really hard - I've done it. We were paid very little money and had basically no training. I would have had no idea what to do in that situation either. And while I may have handled it a bit differently I can understand that point of view. So this is definitely getting off topic but I think teachers and subs need more training, more money, more support so they know and can do what is right.
Anyway! I listened to this one on audiobook just like the first one and the narrator has an engaging and unique voice that I think fits Melody's personality well. I ended up speeding it up a lot though just because I felt the story was so slow and it never really grabbed me. Others I'm sure will feel differently.
December 15, 2021
It pains me to write a less than stellar review, because “Out of My Mind” remains one of my favorite books of all time.
I had such high hopes for Sharon Draper’s sequel to the much beloved book by myself and my fifth grade students. Melody, a girl with cerebral palsy, captured our hearts.
This book lacked substance, depth, suspense, excitement, and the raw, genuine emotions “Out of My Mind” evoked. I found myself struggling to get through it. The writing is simplistic and, sad to say, boring. Also, the amount of exclamation points used really drove me nuts. It didn’t sound like Melody at all.
Melody is such a better character, in my opinion, then was portrayed in this sequel. It feels like Sharon Draper just threw something together after a decade of people begging to know what happened to Melody. In my opinion, this book did not do Melody justice in the least bit.
Another qualm I have is that few of the characters from the first novel are included. The “romance” played up with another disabled boy is **eye-roll** so cheesy and BLAH. Melody is a brilliant character, a GENIUS. Why not focus on her in high school? With the same characters we grew to loathe? What happened to them?
This sequel had so much potential and it just didn’t meet the mark. The storyline falls flat. I know not everyone can write like JK Rowling, but to write a book for the sake of writing it is not only unfair to the readers, but it’s unfair to the characters in the book readers have grown to love, respect, and cherish. Underwhelmed. Sigh.
I had such high hopes for Sharon Draper’s sequel to the much beloved book by myself and my fifth grade students. Melody, a girl with cerebral palsy, captured our hearts.
This book lacked substance, depth, suspense, excitement, and the raw, genuine emotions “Out of My Mind” evoked. I found myself struggling to get through it. The writing is simplistic and, sad to say, boring. Also, the amount of exclamation points used really drove me nuts. It didn’t sound like Melody at all.
Melody is such a better character, in my opinion, then was portrayed in this sequel. It feels like Sharon Draper just threw something together after a decade of people begging to know what happened to Melody. In my opinion, this book did not do Melody justice in the least bit.
Another qualm I have is that few of the characters from the first novel are included. The “romance” played up with another disabled boy is **eye-roll** so cheesy and BLAH. Melody is a brilliant character, a GENIUS. Why not focus on her in high school? With the same characters we grew to loathe? What happened to them?
This sequel had so much potential and it just didn’t meet the mark. The storyline falls flat. I know not everyone can write like JK Rowling, but to write a book for the sake of writing it is not only unfair to the readers, but it’s unfair to the characters in the book readers have grown to love, respect, and cherish. Underwhelmed. Sigh.
November 16, 2021
Melody can't speak and requires a wheelchair to move around because she has cerebral palsy. That doesn't mean her mind is disabled but other people might think that. She decides that in order to face her fears now that she can "speak" with the help of a computer device called a MediTalker and finds that she has grown after her last school year. After finding a summer camp that will accept her, she applies and gets in after being wait-listed. The story takes us on her journey as she gains courage plus encouragement from the camp counselors.
She actually rides a horse, goes on a zip line, and tries different foods - all things that normal kids want to experience. You may find that Melody is braver than any 12 year old and some adults. The story is very heartwarming and shows kids that even though others may look and act differently, they all have similar wants and needs. Melody learns to trust those outside her family and make some lifelong friends. I really enjoyed this and Out of my Mind.
She actually rides a horse, goes on a zip line, and tries different foods - all things that normal kids want to experience. You may find that Melody is braver than any 12 year old and some adults. The story is very heartwarming and shows kids that even though others may look and act differently, they all have similar wants and needs. Melody learns to trust those outside her family and make some lifelong friends. I really enjoyed this and Out of my Mind.
August 14, 2023
3.5! Melody’s growth and healing done in this book is so great to read. Pushing herself and trying new things, the disability representation that goes on in this book was bringing tears to my eyes.. truly amazing read.
April 10, 2024
Y’all this book was so good!!! Melody goes to a special needs camp and learns so much not only about camp activities, but making friends, and trying new things like having a crush! This book was beautifully written. I was rooting for Melody all the way! Highly recommend to parents and kids.
June 1, 2023
İçimdeki Müzik çok beğendiğim bir çocuk kitabıydı. Melody’nin zekasına hayran olmuş ve kitap boyunca yer yer sevinerek yer yer üzülerek okumuştum. İçimdeki Melodi devam kitabı olarak yazılmış ve Melody bu sefer birazcık daha büyük ve yaz aylarını güzel geçirmeye kararlı. İlk kitap biraz daha hüzünlü bir okumaydı engelli olmanın zorlukları daha çok yansıtılmıştı. İkinci kitap çok daha pozitif bir havaya sahipti. Melody’nin engelli çocuklar için özel olarak oluşturulmuş bir yaz kampına katılması ve burada geçirdiği zamanı anlatıyor. Başta korkunç hatta yapması imkansız olan birçok aktiviteyi yapabilmesi için uğraşan insanları da okuyoruz. Eğlenceli bir kitap hatta ilkine göre daha basit denebilir. İlk kitaptan daha çocuksu hissettiren yanları vardı ama belki de bana öyle gelmiştir. Okurlar genelde Melody’nin çocuk gibi konuşmadığından yakınmış ama yazarın 70 küsür yaşında olmasına bakılırsa bu normal kabul edilebilir. Pozitif olduğunu söyledim biraz fazla toz pembe bir kitaptı ama Melody’nin hayatına benzer bir hayat yaşayan çocuklar için ya da direkt farklı bir engeli olanlar için bence bu pozitifliğin olması iyi bir şey. Özellikle çocuk kitaplarında öğreticiliğe, empatiye odaklanan kitapları görmek çok sevindirici. Türkiye’de internetten araştırma yaptığımda Melody’nin gittiği gibi bir kamp tek tük gördüm. Umarım zamanla daha fazla ve daha çok etkinlik içeren kamplar açılır. Benim beğendiğim bir kitap oldu. Arada middle grade okumayı seviyorum doğrusu. Hitap ettiği kitleden olmasam da zor okumalarım arasında güzel bir dinlenme oluyor.
June 29, 2022
Who do I recommend this for: people looking for the most wholesome read of their life.
Who do I NOT recommend this for: people looking for an actually quality literary work.
mmmmmmmmmm synesthesia representation by diverse authors mmmmmmm
Melody is back again, and this time, we see her experience at Camp Green Glades, a (fictional) camp made for people who face out of the ordinary challenges just like Melody.
I finished this book in 4 hours (lol), but do you wanna know the problem I have with this book?
There is no conflict.
Literally none.
No, I'm not joking. In this book, Melody spends a bunch of time trying the cool activities at the camp and has fun. THE END.
???
This book would've been better if A. there was conflict and B. it was like ~100 pages shorter, because it's hard to pace a story and keep the reader engaged when there is no rising action or climax. It's just exposition, seriously. I didn't learn any lessons. And maybe I'm visualizing Out of my Mind better than it actually was because I read it like 8 years ago when I was a VERY little one, but Out of my Heart's plot mountain is just a flat line flatter than the energy of my 6th grade science teacher (if you know you know)
Anyways, thanks for coming to my TEDTalk. Either way, this was a good palette cleansing book for me, considering that some people haven't been extremely happy with my last couple reviews lol
Who do I NOT recommend this for: people looking for an actually quality literary work.
mmmmmmmmmm synesthesia representation by diverse authors mmmmmmm
Melody is back again, and this time, we see her experience at Camp Green Glades, a (fictional) camp made for people who face out of the ordinary challenges just like Melody.
I finished this book in 4 hours (lol), but do you wanna know the problem I have with this book?
There is no conflict.
Literally none.
No, I'm not joking. In this book, Melody spends a bunch of time trying the cool activities at the camp and has fun. THE END.
???
This book would've been better if A. there was conflict and B. it was like ~100 pages shorter, because it's hard to pace a story and keep the reader engaged when there is no rising action or climax. It's just exposition, seriously. I didn't learn any lessons. And maybe I'm visualizing Out of my Mind better than it actually was because I read it like 8 years ago when I was a VERY little one, but Out of my Heart's plot mountain is just a flat line flatter than the energy of my 6th grade science teacher (if you know you know)
Anyways, thanks for coming to my TEDTalk. Either way, this was a good palette cleansing book for me, considering that some people haven't been extremely happy with my last couple reviews lol
January 2, 2022
Review
“In our schools, most of us are considered misfits. We are often ignored, mistreated, teased or overlooked. Each of us struggles with something- physical, emotional, mental- that makes us just a little different from others. Sometimes a lot different. But here, we were awesome, we were noble, we were able, and we were cool!”
I absolutely love how Draper represents children of varying abilities with respect and dignity. She writes with such voice and humanity, you really feel like you are inside the mind of a tweenager! Being a middle school teacher, I think she nailed it- the innocent, corny side and the coming of age side were both there in her writing.
After reading Out of my Mind (a few times), I also wondered. whatever happened to Melody anyway? The story of Melody becoming braver and discovering her strengths at camp brought back nostalgic memories of going to summer camp myself at that age. I love how she found real friends and was proud of herself. It had me cheering for her the whole book, like a proud mom!
I’ll admit- I teared up a few times, but didn’t really cry until the acknowledgment section at the end! Draper has a little shout out to teachers who taught during the pandemic. How neat to be acknowledged in writing after a very long few years! Thank you for seeing us, our sacrifice, and passion for learning, Sharon Draper!
“In our schools, most of us are considered misfits. We are often ignored, mistreated, teased or overlooked. Each of us struggles with something- physical, emotional, mental- that makes us just a little different from others. Sometimes a lot different. But here, we were awesome, we were noble, we were able, and we were cool!”
I absolutely love how Draper represents children of varying abilities with respect and dignity. She writes with such voice and humanity, you really feel like you are inside the mind of a tweenager! Being a middle school teacher, I think she nailed it- the innocent, corny side and the coming of age side were both there in her writing.
After reading Out of my Mind (a few times), I also wondered. whatever happened to Melody anyway? The story of Melody becoming braver and discovering her strengths at camp brought back nostalgic memories of going to summer camp myself at that age. I love how she found real friends and was proud of herself. It had me cheering for her the whole book, like a proud mom!
I’ll admit- I teared up a few times, but didn’t really cry until the acknowledgment section at the end! Draper has a little shout out to teachers who taught during the pandemic. How neat to be acknowledged in writing after a very long few years! Thank you for seeing us, our sacrifice, and passion for learning, Sharon Draper!
January 2, 2022
Melody is back and this time she's headed to summer camp in a place that is made for people like her, those who are differently abled. Although she is understandably nervous, she faces her fears with the encouragement of her camp counselor and the support of her new friends, even as she helps them. The first book was about finding her voice and letting others know what she is capable of--much more than they think! This book is about Melody discovering that her strength and capability are so much more than she ever thought! I loved the camp and how it allowed her to experience things that most kids (and people) take for granted. I loved how each of her friends had different strengths, fears, and gifts and that they were able to share their frustrations with each other. Because they KNEW. This was such a wonderful book and I found myself laughing, crying, and cheering Melody from beginning to end. Once again, Sharon Draper hits it out of the park.
January 3, 2022
5 stars.
When I found out there was a sequel to Out of My Mind I was excited. I read Out of My Mind a few years ago; seven times over that summer, and once the next year. It's one of my favorite books, and always will be.
Out of My Heart is very different from the original. It's much more focused on Melody's success and growth as a person, compared to her hardships and failures in Out of My Mind. It's very satisfying to watch Melody discover what she is capable of in Out of My Heart.
My sister has CP, and although Melody and my sister's conditions are not the same, it feels good to know that there are lots of ways for people who are disabled to do activities that might not be available to them. It really hurts seeing kids my sister's age doing fun things that she isn't able to do.
All in all, Out of My Heart is a great read for kids and adults alike. Is it as good as the original? No, sequels rarely are, but is it a really good book? Yes.
When I found out there was a sequel to Out of My Mind I was excited. I read Out of My Mind a few years ago; seven times over that summer, and once the next year. It's one of my favorite books, and always will be.
Out of My Heart is very different from the original. It's much more focused on Melody's success and growth as a person, compared to her hardships and failures in Out of My Mind. It's very satisfying to watch Melody discover what she is capable of in Out of My Heart.
My sister has CP, and although Melody and my sister's conditions are not the same, it feels good to know that there are lots of ways for people who are disabled to do activities that might not be available to them. It really hurts seeing kids my sister's age doing fun things that she isn't able to do.
All in all, Out of My Heart is a great read for kids and adults alike. Is it as good as the original? No, sequels rarely are, but is it a really good book? Yes.
February 11, 2022
Melody Brooks goes to summer camp.
Did you just read my synopsis of the book? Cause if you have- congratulations, you’ve read the book. NOTHING happens in this book. No conflict, no struggle. Nothing. Such a shame considering how fantastic the first one was. Tell me you weren’t planning on a sequel without telling me you weren’t planning on a sequel.
Did you just read my synopsis of the book? Cause if you have- congratulations, you’ve read the book. NOTHING happens in this book. No conflict, no struggle. Nothing. Such a shame considering how fantastic the first one was. Tell me you weren’t planning on a sequel without telling me you weren’t planning on a sequel.
January 5, 2022
This sequel was well worth the 10 year wait. I loved Out of My Mind, but I think I loved this sequel even more! Melody is such a wonderful narrator and I loved the friendships developed in this book.
January 20, 2022
It was a lovely book I actually liked it better than the first one.
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