Diagnosed with ADHD after years of struggling through school with a mind that has difficulty focusing, Clea uses her love of chess to develop better concentration skills and block out challenging symptoms and distractions. A first novel. - (Baker & Taylor)
Twelve-year-old Clea wants to do her homework, follow instructions, pay attention in school, and play chess on the school team, but somehow she cannot focus on whatever is in front of her, and the other kids at school are starting to notice and make fun of her; when her worried parents take her to be tested she finds out that she has ADHD (only without the hyperactivity)--and with help from the psychiatrist who seems to really understand her she is determined to learn how to focus. - (Baker & Taylor)
Following
Braced, which had three starred reviews, comes a story of a girl caught between her love of chess and her ADHD.
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. Other kids are starting to notice. When Clea 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.
In a starred review, Booklist called Alyson Gerber's first novel, Braced, "a masterfully constructed and highly empathetic debut about a different kind of acceptance." With Focused, she 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.
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Scholastic)
Following Braced, which had three starred reviews, comes a story of a girl caught between her love of chess and her ADHD.
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Scholastic)
Alyson Gerber is the author of The Liars Society series and the critically acclaimed novels Focused, Braced, and Taking Up Space. A former marketing director, Alyson earned her MFA in creative writing at the New School. She grew up in New England and now lives in New York City with her family. Follow her @AlysonGerber and at alysongerber.com
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Scholastic)
Booklist Reviews
*Starred Review* Seventh-grader Clea struggles to finish homework on time, has trouble concentrating in school, and is often forgetful, disorganized, and blurts out things without thinking. Best friend Red is supportive, but he doesn't really understand her challenges, and classmates make fun of her because they think she's not smart. Clea loves chess and knows that if she continues to fail assignments, she won't be allowed on the school's team. Luckily, her teachers notice she's struggling and suggest Clea get tested for ADHD. She's soon diagnosed, but even with medication, things don't just automatically improve. After she blurts out a secret Red didn't want revealed, he refuses to speak to her. Sanam, Clea's dyslexic chess teammate, offers helpful advice, and with time, Clea's family comes to understand what she's going through. Clea also has a realistic love-hate relationship with chess champ Dylan, and a special one with her six-year-old sister, who has difficulty enunciating words. Clea's likability, persistence, and ability to bounce back from adversity is truly inspiring. Author Gerber (Braced, 2017), who has ADHD herself, is able to compassionately and realistically convey the experience in this sweetly appealing story, which concludes with a list of helpful resources. Grades 4-7. Copyright 2019 Booklist Reviews.
Horn Book Guide Reviews
Seventh grader Clea struggles with organization, attention, and school assignments, so her parents have her evaluated for ADHD. The approachable, realistic novel handles Clea's trials with sensitivity while giving readers plenty of solid information about the disorder. Once she has a diagnosis and appropriate support, Clea's small steps toward school success are both believable and encouraging. Copyright 2019 Horn Book Guide Reviews.
Kirkus Reviews
Gerber, who tackled scoliosis with Braced (2017), turns her lens on a young woman with ADHD. Massachusetts seventh-grader Clea loves magic and chess, hates math, and wants to be a better friend, sister, and student. No matter how hard she tries, she struggles to finish homework and tests on time, putting her spot on the chess team in jeopardy. Meanwhile friendships hit a snag when she impulsively blurts out sensitive information her best friend and chess teammate, Red, would rather keep secret. 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, w hich she knows firsthand. The supportive world Clea inhabits both at home and at school is an ideal place free of stigma; would that all students with learning differences experience such in real life. Gerber's text and author's note feature excellent information and resources for ADHD brains and the hearts who love them. Clea and Red present as white while Sanam's name suggests she's Middle Eastern or South Asian. An accurate and compassionate picture of growing up with ADHD is the icing on the cake of this well-told novel. (Fiction. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus 2019 Kirkus/BPI Communications. All rights reserved.
School Library Journal Reviews
Gr 5–8—Seventh grader Clea doesn't know why she can't seem to get her homework done on time or why she gets distracted and fails tests. Saying things she doesn't mean is her normal, even when she wishes it wasn't. She blurts out answers at chess club, ruining a live-action game, and then exposes her best friend's family problems to everyone at school. When her parents take her to be tested for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), she is angry and anxious but also hopeful. She doesn't want to have ADHD, but she does want to feel like she has control over her actions. Clea's signs of ADHD are realistic: the little things that distract her, impulse control issues, and poor management skills. Readers with and without ADHD will relate to Clea's struggles in her school and social life as she strives to achieve the balance she needs to be successful. At times, the protagonist appears more mature and self-aware than her age. She puts her doctor's and counselor's support into place with very little parental help and quickly learns how to advocate for herself. Her explanation of her diagnosis and enumeration of its effects on her and the supports she needs sometimes takes away from the immediacy of the story and veers toward the didactic. However, the portrayal of what it can be like to live with ADHD is spot-on. Also, the message of supposed weaknesses being hidden strengths is a perennially important one. VERDICT A good addition to realistic fiction collections.—Kelly Roth, Bartow County Public Library, Cartersville, GA
Copyright 2019 School Library Journal.
