BLUISH

Set in New York City, BLUISH is a story of friendship, coping with serious illness, and being different. Interactions between community and family portray Bluish, a fifth-grader returning to school after treatment for leukemia. Her classmates learn to accept her knitted hats, wheelchair, and frequent absences as they confront the reality of her challenges. Although useful in an instructional setting, the story has some heavy-handed messages about human differences and being a friend. Lisa Renee Pitts’s fully voiced narration is well paced and generally successful at indicating the various ethnicities of the class. The voice of Bluish herself is high-pitched and trembling, to highlight her illness. L.H. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 06]