Way to Go, Alex!

Carly learns a lot about Alex, her mentally disabled older brother, as he trains for and competes in the Special Olympics

Kindergarten-Grade 2-Pulver has lost her usual deft touch in this story of a young boy's efforts in the Special Olympics. Carly longs for something to brag about and celebrate, but her brother has mental retardation and can't do things like most other kids. During the 50-meter dash, he stops short of the finish line, thinking that the ribbon means he should stop. In the end, Carly sees that Alex had the courage to try. The writing is stiff and almost self-conscious. The illustrations are stiff as well, and don't really show Alex as anything but slightly clumsy. As a result, both Carly's learning experience and her brother's victory have a hollow feel to them.
Christine A. Moesch, Buffalo & Erie County Public Library, NY
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Carly feels the dual emotions that many siblings of special-needs children may feel. She's frustrated with her older brother, Alex, whose "brain doesn't work," and is ashamed of her feelings. When her parents enroll Alex in three events in the upcoming Special Olympics, Carly helps him train, then cheers him on despite her pessimism. Pulver brings the story to a fair and realistic conclusion, creating in Carly a character who is genuinely loving but also sometimes puzzled and discouraged. Wolf's pictures, in intense but softly layered colors, reflect the warmth of the family as well as the excitement of the big day when the Special Olympics take place. A book that will fill a need for materials on disabilities and is a solid story in its own right. Susan Dove Lempke