Includes bibliographical references (pages 231-248) and index.

"HandiLand looks at young adult novels, fantasy series, graphic memoirs, and picture books of the last 25 years in which characters with disabilities take center stage for the first time. These books take what others regard as weaknesses--for instance, Harry Potter's headaches or Hazel Lancaster's oxygen tank--and redefine them as part of the hero's journey. HandiLand places this movement from sidekick to hero in the political contexts of disability rights movements in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Ghana. HandiLand moves through the public spaces young people with disabilities have entered, including schools, nature, and online communities. How does Afrofuturist science fiction shed light on the Flint water crisis? How does Harry Potter strengthen fans struggling with depression? How does Wonder offers strategies for entering a new school with a visible disability? As a disabled person and parent of children with disabilities, Wheeler offers an inside look into families who collude with their kids in shaping a better world."--,Provided by publisher.

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