10-year-old Trudy Mackintower does not want to move, and she definitely does not want to start attending a new school. Starting a new school would be no big deal to a normal kid, who is just like everyone else…but Trudy isn’t like everyone else. Born with Mild Cerebral Palsy(CP), a neurological condition that affects her fine motor skills and balance, she often falls, is teased for the way she walks, and has trouble making friends. To compensate for her not so normal body and odd way of walking, she hides behind cute clothes and getting lost in the imaginary world of her favorite books where she can be anyone else but… herself. Trudy’s world is shaken, when she learns she has to move. Trudy uses the move as a chance to reinvent herself and create a world in which, she doesn’t have CP, or have to use a special desk at school and finally has friends. Her world comes crashing down around her when reality sets in, and she encounters Harper and Laurel. The queens of Mrs. Peabody’s fifth-grade class. The two girls, torment her, and Trudy faces bullying like she’s never experienced before. She realizes that nothing has changed. She’s just the same old Trudy. She still has CP and has yet to discover the true meaning of friendship. It is when she’s at her most vulnerable, that she meets other students like herself who also have physical and learning differences. Will she learn to confront who she is and help other kids do the same? Written by debuted author, D.D. Myrick who also understands what it’s like to have Mild Cerebral Palsy and suddenly move to a new school. Trudy Mackintower & The Originals, captures the story of one girl’s journey from hiding who she is, to embracing her own originality.D. D. Myrick is a graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson University. She has a B. A. in Communication. Her work has been featured in publications such as Chicken Soup for the Soul: Just for Teenagers. She believes with faith and determination anything is possible, and that we should always celebrate being an Original.
