Roxy the Raccoon has a lot of friends who want to spend time with her and include her in their fun. But she is in a wheelchair, so it isn't possible for her to do so. They feel bad about not thinking about making accommodations for her and then work together to find ways to include her.

I found it to have a great message about inclusion and being sensitive to special needs. You cannot change the person to fit the activity, but you can adapt the environment to accommodate the person. That's pretty much the foundation of my Montessori background.

In the back of the book are suggested questions for teachers to use at a circle time for conversation. They can be adapted to fit the age level of your students. And parents reading this book at home could also use these for conversations with their children.

The watercolor illustrations are cute for the most part, though I will say I am not usually a fan of unrealistic depictions of animals, such as a pink chipmunk, in a book that is supposed to be talking about real life issues. Some of the scale seems a bit off and the wheelchair looks like something someone made back in the early 1900s at home. I don't think many children will necessarily notice these things, though. But they could also provide for further conversations with the children. I think the message of the story far outweighs these.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a review copy of this book. I was not required to leave a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Review crossposted to Amazon and B&N.

Roxy the Raccoon was a good story about friendship, adaptability and inclusion. However, sometimes the words were difficult to read and it was a little long for a picture book.

Roxy the Raccoon wants to do things with her friends like see Beaver's house, kick a ball around with the squirrels, or watch the sunset with Cherry the Chipmunk up at the top of the tree. But Roxy uses a wheelchair and can't do those things with her friends. Thanks to some quick thinking on her friends' part, Roxy and her pals figure it out!

Roxy the Raccoon: A Story to Help Children Learn about Disability and Inclusion is part of the Truth & Tails series, whose goal is to eliminate prejudices and encourage acceptance in young children. The book also includes before and after reading questions for parents or teachers.

If you’re interested in reading Roxy the Raccoon: A Story to Help Children Learn about Disability and Inclusion, you can purchase a copy here on Amazon.

Roxy the Raccoon: A Story to Help Children Learn about Disability and Inclusion by Alice Reeves is a book about Roxy who is disabled and needs a wheelchair and what her life is like. 

This heart felt book for ages 4-8 shows children that there are ways to include a person who can not walk or stand, in their games and life, and how to be creative in finding ways around obstacles.

Roxy the Raccoon is differently-abled and cannot do the same thing as some of the other animals in the forest but with a bit of thought and working together they are able to play together and hang out and see and do the same things. This beautiful story shows how Roxy's friends make her feel included. The illustrations done in watercolor and are eye catching. A stunning book for all children.

I received an ARC from Jessica Kingsley Publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

I give this book 4.5/5 stars.

This was a really good book. The story is excellent and I loved it.
Roxy the Raccoon is differently-abled and cannot do the same thing as some of the other animals in the forest but with a bit of thought and working together they are able to play together and hang out and see and do the same things. 5 stars from me - a lovely book to show to young school children.

A book written to attempt to address disability and the exclusion of wheelchair users but feels more of a slap in the face rather than supportive in its tone. Firstly, Where am I coming from with this statement. I have grown up around wheelchair users and those with a wide range of disabilities, both physical, mental and learning. The choice of an outdated invalid chair rather than a modern, brightly coloured sports chair was the first thing that jumped out at me, and possibly someone without my close association with this area would think this my first overreaction, however, when this book is aimed at inclusion, this image is not in line with that thought. Overall, I would not recommend this book.

*thank you to NetGalley and Jessica Kingsl­ey Publishers for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

5 stars.
Yes, Yes, Yes and YES I do recommend this! It is such a good book about how Roxy the Raccoon who is disabled and needs a wheelchair and what her life is like. This heart felt book for ages 4-8 (but also for older children) shows children that there are ways to include a person who can not walk or stand, in their games and life, and how to be creative in finding ways around obstacles. This is a beautiful story of how Roxy's friends make her feel included. The illustrations done in watercolour are really eye catching. A stunning book for all children.

Very sweet and thoughtful text about the differently-abled. I think all children need to read this book to be aware of others they might not always socialize with to learn how to be more mindful about peoples abilities.

This heartwarming children's book uses animals playing together as a means to teach the importance of working together to break down barriers to include peers of all levels of ability!