Opinions on The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen (2011)

Jess is runner. In fact, her coach says she’s on track to be a world class runner, and she has no plans of letting that goal go. That is, until she loses her right leg from below the knee, and suddenly trying to get up seems hard. Although everyone is determined to get her not only back in school, but out running, she can’t help but feel her reality is a stone wall. But after three weeks, she finally gives in, and goes back to school- in a whole new perspective. Right now she’s using a wheelchair to get around, one the she has limited control over. Plus, the desks aren’t that accessible, which is why she ends up sitting in the back of math class with Rosa, a student with cerebral palsy, who uses a power wheelchair. Over time, Jess starts to find solace in talking to Rosa, partly because she’s the only who knows of any idea of what Jess is going through, but mostly because she discovers that the girl she used to put in the background is actually extremely cool. And, with the help of Rosa, Jess finds that her life isn’t over, but just begun.

For this review, I’m mostly going to focus on the portrayal and storyline of Rosa, because like her, I have cerebral palsy and use a power wheelchair. So, I have an abundance of personal knowledge about cerebral palsy in general, which I can apply in trying to decide whether Rosa accurately represent the cerebral palsy community.

Going into this book, I was expecting Rosa to have a big part in the story, especially since she is mentioned in the official summary for the book. However, I honestly think Rosa was a very small character. I mean, Jess’s best friend, and even her mother, had a bigger part in the story. That being said, I can’t help but think that Rosa’s character as a whole was just a ploy to make the book look more dynamic than it actually is. Don’t get me wrong, in general I think The Running Dream has a very important story, but I don’t think Rosa’s character was very thought through.

First, I want to talk about what I liked about portrayal of Rosa. The main thing that comes to mind was the Rosa extremely smart.  She was not only a freshman in a junior math class, but received top marks. She was actually so good at math that she was a student tutor to other students, including Jess. So often, I think people with cerebral palsy aren’t perceived as important members of society, and it was awesome to see Rosa valued and seen as someone who was helpful in her school. Also, Rosa had friends, which is so important to consider while writing someone with cerebral palsy, and it definitely made me feel better. In personal experience, I’ve had a really hard time making friends, and I hate to say it, but I think a lot of teenages are hesitant of talking and hanging out with me because of my challenges. Therefore, I think the several scenes of Rosa being surrounded by friends at lunch will generally give a positive impression to readers that people with cerebral palsy (and disabilities in general) are super cool and definitely offer positive friendships.

In the friendship of Rosa and Jess, though, I had problems. There was just an overall feel  that the friendship wasn’t true. Starting in the beginning, Jess was really self- conscious about being seen with Rosa, refusing Rosa’s help, even though she definitely needed it. Which sucked even more, because Rosa, again, was a really cool girl, but it still apparently wasn’t enough for Jess to want to hangout with her. Unfortunately, I can see that scenario sending a message that it doesn’t matter what the content is of a person with a disability, they are automatically deemed as embarrassment. (Side note: It would be nice if once, a character was written when they were friends with a person with a disability, and never felt embarrassed or self-conscious about their friendship).  

Once Jess finally got over the embarrassment factor, their friendship became purely focused on Jess. First, Jess felt totally proud of herself for being friends with Jess, even though she denied that she did. It was just obvious in the way she spoke about Rosa to her other friends. Speaking of Jess’s other friends, she considered Rosa separate from them. Only once did they meet, and Jess introduced Rosa as her tutor, not her friend (again, embarrassed). When the summer came, Jess really didn’t really continue a friendship with  Rosa. Sure, they exchanged a full words when Jess went on her morning walk, but I don’t think that would be fulfillment enough for a friendship. In fact, when Jess had a surprise party for her new leg, Rosa wasn’t even invited, because no one considered her a friend of Jess’s. However, I really see potential that readers could leave this book seeing that was wrong in some of her actions with Rosa, and really think about how they treat people with disabilities.

Finally, as I explained a little bit before, Rosa wasn’t a very developed character. Mostly, I saw her as purely a plot device to help Jess move forward with her life. Usually, I’m pretty okay with authors doing this, but  I do think that authors, and basically anyone who has/knows/writes a person with a disability needs to make people aware that people with disabilities are more than someone who “inspires you”. I knew almost nothing about Rosa, except that she lived with her mom. I didn’t know her favorite color, how she feels about her disability, or her aspirations in life. I think that if other details about her life showed up, she could be seen as much more relatable to not just other people with cerebral palsy, but to everyone.

Ultimately, The Running Dream was not a hit or a miss for me. Compared to other books I’ve read with characters with cerebral palsy, in general Van Draanen did a better job than most, even though there were issues. Which means we're moving forward and breaking age-old stereotypes. So, I have to say, I hope people do read The Running Dream, because it both highlights the value people with disabilities have, but also the problems they face in friendships.