Stuck in Neutral | Social Sensitivity

Stuck in Neutral Social Sensitivity

The serious topic of euthanasia lies at the heart of this novel. Although the topic is heavy, younger adolescents will find the book accessible and easy to read. The portrayal of disability is honest but not overly grim, and humor and poetic descriptions lighten the story.

Another serious theme is people's attitudes and behaviors towards others with disabilities. Shawn's story should cause especially middle-school age students to reflect on the ways people are often cruel to those who are different. Shawn experiences not only the direct cruelty of the boys who taunt him at his house but also the more subtle discrimination of being called a "vegetable" and being relegated to a "special" class at school. The ideal of human dignity, no matter what appearances are, contrasts sharply with the ways people often react to "special" youth. Stuck in Neutral may enable young people to pause and think...
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