Gwendolyn Rogers has a list. She has a list of everything that is wrong with her. Things like she talks too loud and is impulsive and a picky eater and careless. These words came from the Individualized Education Program (IEP) that was written up about her. She’s seen therapists and tried diets and been told to be good a million times. It’s not that she doesn’t want to be good. She does want it, and she tries really hard, but she has 54 things that are wrong with her.
And that’s why she can’t go to Horse Camp. Even though she wants to go to Horse Camp, more than she wants anything else.
Her friends and her brother Tyler (they don’t live in the same house, but they had the same father) will all get to go to Horse Camp, because they don’t have things wrong with them. They don’t get so overwhelmed by the anger inside them that their brains break and they act out in impulsive ways that make teachers call her mom. But Gwen does. Sometimes the anger inside her grows so big that she can’t help herself. Because she has 54 things wrong with her.
But her mother wants to make things better for them both. Her mother keeps trying new things, to see if they will help. And they don’t. Usually, they make things worse. But then Gwen’s mother takes her to see Dr. Nessa, and Dr. Nessa tests Gwen some more. She figures out that there is really only one thing wrong with Gwen—she has ADHD. And now that Gwen and her mother know what the problem is, they can try to find a solution.
There is no perfect solution for ADHD, and when the first medicine they try dulls Gwen’s Gwen-ness, they stop it. Then they try a second medicine, and that helps her stay organized but makes her angrier. But the more Gwen learns about her ADHD, the more she understands that there isn’t anything wrong with her. She didn’t lose most of her friends because she’s socially inept. She lost most of her friends because she shut down after reading that bad IEP, and they’ve been waiting for her to come back to them.
And as she works at becoming more honest with what she’s going through, either by thoughtfully sharing her experiences with her friends or by accidentally letting her mouth get ahead of her brain, Gwen realizes that people care about her. Her mother and her friends and her brother all love her because of who she is, because of her humor and creativity and spirit. And no matter what is wrong with her, they will stand by her.
Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers is a really amazing look at what goes on inside a kid with ADHD. Gwen’s thoughts and feelings burn so bright through these descriptions that you can feel what it must be like to struggle with the disease. Author Caela Carter brings that intensity to life in such a powerful way that you can’t help but feel the frustration and heartbreak of this fifth grader who is so completely misunderstood.
This novel needs to be read by teachers and parents, to help them understand the experience of a child who struggles with differences in the classroom, at home, or in social situations. And the kids who have always struggled to fit in will find compassion and companionship in the character of Gwen. This is an amazing story of finding yourself through difficulties, of finding your voice despite years of not being heard, and of finding hope when you need it most. I thought it was powerful and heart-breaking, and I hope that it finds a wide readership, because we need to realize these kids fall through the cracks all the time and they need our help.
Egalleys for Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers were provided by HarperCollins Children’s Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.
