Can Children'S Books About Disabilities Teach Empathy?

Elise Stanton has one dream: to study medicine. When she earns a coveted spot in medical school, her future seems bright—until her parents present her with an ultimatum. The only way they’ll pay her tuition is if she marries Alejandro Mendoza, the disabled heir to a powerful family. “Marry a stranger for money? Is that the price of my freedom?” Elise protests, her voice trembling with frustration. “Clara gets her luxuries handed to her, but I have to sell my life to pursue my dream?” In her family’s eyes, she is always second-best, a shadow to her younger sister, Clara. Left with no other choice, Elise agrees to her parents’ condition. Then she meets Alejandro Mendoza. Confined to a wheelchair, Alejandro is bitter and guarded, his piercing gaze a wall against the world. But when Elise examines his condition, her sharp medical instincts kick in. “The doctors had a wrong diagnosis,” she insists. “Your condition is reversible.” Alejandro narrows his eyes. “Why are you doing this? What do you want?” Her answer is simple: “I’ll help you recover, and when you can walk again, this marriage ends.”

"Look at this rejected omega!" My ex-husband sneered, and his pack members burst into laughter. Standing beside him was my younger sister, the one he cheated on me with. She clung to his arm, flaunting their bond for all to see. "She must be here to steal you from me," my sister spat in disbelief. "She's not here for any of that," my second chance mate’s voice boomed as he entered the room, towering over everyone in his sharp black suit. The crowd fell silent, astonished. "She's my wife and mate now. She's the new Luna Queen!" he declared, bowing to me with respect and love as he took my hand. The shock on my sister's and ex's faces spoke volumes. They never thought I'd rise above it all. But even I couldn't help but wonder, Wasn't he crippled just one night ago? --- Carena devoted years to her marriage, serving her arrogant alpha husband and in-laws after leaving her birth pack for her fated mate. But her loyalty was repaid with the ultimate betrayal: discovering her alpha husband had been sleeping with her 19-year-old sister. Hurt and rejected, Carena was thrown out of the pack, forced to return to her birth pack with nowhere else to turn. To be accepted back, she was told she must marry the crippled alpha King. She thought that would be the end of it. But one night, she woke up to a troubling sight, realizing she needed to uncover the secrets of her mysterious disabled alpha King before it’s too late.

Lux Hale is the princess of the Royal Pack. She has everything that you would want in a princess and future Luna Queen. There is only one problem with her... she was born blind. Lux doesn’t want to leave her pack and she gets more nervous as her eighteenth birthday approaches, wishing the mate bond didn't exist. Unbeknownst to Lux, her best friend Silas has always had a massive crush on her. Will Lux be cherished by her mate? Will Silas be able to move on if it turns out Lux is not his mate? Join Lux and Silas on their journeys in figuring out their lives!

Roxanne never expected her father would sell her out to be a disabled man's wife, instead of her step-sister, Reina. Heartbroken and threatened with her brother's treatment, Roxanne discovered Reina had seduced her fiancee and got pregnant for him. Hurt and escaping from home, she ended up at a bar and made one of the greatest mistakes of her life but it later turned out to be worth it, as the entire thing was a big misunderstanding. Her husband-to-be wasn't disabled, it was something more. He was the perfect man and Reina grew to regret her decision, to forsake the privilege to be his bride. As he helped her raise up, Roxanne discovered a heart-shattering truth her father was hiding from her.

Polly is an Aspin who got separated from his mother and brothers when he was very young. He struggled to keep himself alive. He wanted to belong but what he got was rejection after rejection, heartache after heartache - yet he marched on with his leg that could not be bent. This is a story of survival - a story of hope - that even with his leg that could not be bent, love is possible.

My adopted daughter, Phoebe Marsh, possessed an evil ability. Whenever she got hurt, the pain would also be inflicted directly on my biological daughter, Maisie Shaw. She deliberately hurt herself, covering her body with wounds and bruises. Then, she would turn around with cold eyes, watching Maisie writhe on the floor in agony until she passed out from the pain. With no medical solution available, I broke down and held Maisie close, begging my husband, Brandon Shaw, to send Phoebe away. However, he would erupt in fury. "It's obviously Maisie who's been faking illness for attention, and you're making up this ridiculous story to get rid of Phoebe. She's just a fragile, helpless child. How can you be so vicious?" After that, Phoebe escalated her self-harm even more viciously. Meanwhile, Maisie spent every day curled up in the corner of her bed, refusing to let anyone touch her. On Maisie's birthday, Phoebe threw herself from the fifth floor. Just as Maisie was blowing out her candles and making a wish, she suddenly began bleeding from all her facial orifices, and she died instantly. Yet, Phoebe only suffered minor scrapes. I died from overwhelming grief shortly after. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to Phoebe's first day in our home. Maisie was playing with her Legos when she suddenly clutched her ankle and started crying. This time, I grabbed the broom from behind the door and swung it toward Maisie, shouting, "I'll beat you up for faking illness and seeking attention!"