

Focused
Author: Alyson Gerber
Narrator: Cassandra Morris
Unabridged: 6 hr 39 min
Format: Digital Audiobook Download
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Published: 07/27/2021
Categories: Children's Fiction, Children's Social Themes, School
Author: Alyson Gerber
Narrator: Cassandra Morris
Unabridged: 6 hr 39 min
Format: Digital Audiobook Download
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Published: 07/27/2021
Categories: Children's Fiction, Children's Social Themes, School
Alyson Gerber is the author of Braced. She is a graduate of the New School’s MFA in Writing for Children and lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband and daughter. Visit her at AlysonGerber.com and find her everywhere else at @AlysonGerber.
Cassandra Morris is an American voiceover actress, narrator, and writer. She began her career as a teenager, hosting the educational video series Real World Science, and then went on to work as a journalist, writing for newspapers as well as fashion and style blogs. She now works primarily as a voiceover artist, narrating and voicing characters for animation, anime shows, and audiobooks—for which she has earned several Earphones Awards.
As an adult teacher/librarian/parent I very much appreciated this story about a 7th grade girl with ADHD, and actually learned a few things about the condition. I appreciate what Gerber did with the story and how she shares so much with readers about ADHD, although it does tend toward the blatant te......more
Rating: 4.5 Stars Clea felt like she was failing at EVERYTHING! She was messing up her class assignments, hurting her friends and family - she just couldn't seem to do anything right. After a string of poor grades, her parents had Clea tested and discovered that she has ADHD. Now that she had an expl......more
4.5 stars My younger self felt so seen reading this. I have ADHD and absolutley relate to Clea. I had and have some of the same struggles as she does and boy did this book really hit home for me thinking back to my struggles in school. Loved this. SO close to 5 stars but I didnt love seeing the roman......more
Just an adorable book. It gave me some insights on ADHD and speech problems. I read this because I'm on a chess kick, and there was enough to keep me interested. As an example, the knight moving clop, clop, clop. It's nice to read a book about a loving family. This book was a very happy accident......more
“A story full of charm, compassion, and empathy.” Today
“An accurate and compassionate picture of growing up with ADHD is the icing on the cake of this well-told novel.” Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Author Gerber, who has ADHD herself, is able to compassionately and realistically convey the experience in this sweetly appealing story.” Booklist (starred review)
“This book includes middle school family drama, a little romance, and could be used for growth mindset lessons about…learning to become a self-advocate.” School Library Connection (highly recommended)
“Gerber handles this very detailed and informative look at a mind under the influence of ADHD with remarkable grace and clarity, highlighting both the difficulties and the lesser-known advantages.” Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“With a realistically youthful voice, narrator Cassandra Morris convincingly portrays the middle school joys and angst of a twelve-year-old girl…Morris's strong portrayal of Clea will have listeners cheering for her successes.” AudioFile