I Got This

Erin Woods is aged almost 12. She has achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism. Her younger brother Joe also has the same condition. Erin runs the risk of making promises to Joe that she may find difficult to keep.

Erin’s stature however is not the only focus of the story. A well-known band named Fusion want to form a junior group starring teenage girls. Erin’s friend Aimee persuades Erin to audition as a singer since she has an amazing voice. But will Erin find the confidence to face an audition without fearing her own judgement or that of others? Can she at the same time navigate joining secondary school for the first time, with all the challenges that transition involves for her?

One of the manifest strengths of this novel is the way telling details about achondroplasia are mentioned in the most natural and unforced way. Erin’s grandmother for example has to try several different sizes of school blazer before she can find the one she can adapt to fit her granddaughter. The book also describes (for the first time as far as this reviewer is aware) the role of the Learning Support Assistant in schools. The book highlights the problems posed by the well-meaning intervention of the LSA when Erin is seeking to form classroom friendships.

Many factors combine to make Erin feel uncomfortably different from the other pupils. For example when they take the bus to school Erin must use a taxi, a difference that can easily form a barrier. It is an impressive accomplishment for these two authors (Mailey herself has achondroplasia) to have produced a work of seamless integrity, a work which leaves the reader aching for Erin to find her place as a singer in the band.