Belonging

About the Book

When fifteen-year-old Meg Hollis insists on entering her local high school, her parents are skeptical. Because Meg is blind, they worry that she will not be able to keep up with her classwork or find her way through the halls. They tell her she can try it for a semester; if it doesn't work out, she can go to the Institute for the Blind.

Meg finds herself under pressure to succeed academically, to show her parents that she can handle regular school. But the hardest part for her is the social scene. Meg longs to be part of the "in crowd," and works hard not to appear different from her peers. A group of unconventional friends and a memorable teacher help Meg discover who she really is. During a tumultuous few months Meg learns that it is not her blindness, but her sense of herself that makes her unique.

About the Author

Deborah Kent grew up in Little Falls, New Jersey, where she was the first totally blind student to attend the local public school. She is the author of more than a dozen young-adult novels, as well as numerous nonfiction titles for children. Ms. Kent lives in Chicago with her husband, children?s author R. Conrad Stein, and their daughter Janna.