The MAGIC Foundation is a charitable non-profit organization created to provide support services for the families of children afflicted with a wide variety of chronic and/or critical disorders, syndromes and diseases that affect a child’s growth.
The MAGIC Foundation’s mission is to reduce the emotional and physical trauma caused by growth disorders, resulting in healthier, happier children and consequently, adults. Their Motto: Children have a short time to grow and a lifetime to live with the results! Together we are MAGIC!
This list is adapted from parents of the MAGIC Foundation who shared books they found helpful in raising their children with these conditions. This list is not an endorsement of these books from the MAGIC Foundation itself.
Children’s Books
Helping Ava Grow
About the Book
Written by: Sandy Taylor
Illustrated by: Don Baillargeon
This is a caring children’s book about a sweet 4-year old girl. It chronicles how she and her family learn to adjust to life, including introducing the injections, eating healthy, and staying connected during this trying time. The book is intended to create a dialog with children, communicating together about this medical life change, and the impact it has on the whole family – even siblings. Explaining the process in a caring and loving way was really important to mother and author, Sandy Taylor, whose daughter, Ava inspired this book. She hopes families can use HELPING AVA GROW! to cope with their diagnosis of Growth Hormone Deficiency and IGF-1 Deficiency.
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Stand Straight, Ella Kate
About the Book
Written by: Kate Klise
Illustrated by: M. Sarah Klise
Ella Kate Ewing was born in 1872. She started out small, but she just kept on growing. Soon she was too tall for her desk at school, too tall for her bed at home, too tall to fit anywhere. Ella Kate was a real-life giant, but she refused to hide herself away. Instead, she used her unusual height to achieve her equally large dreams.
The masterful Klise sisters deliver a touching and inspiring true story about a strong-minded girl who finally embraced her differences. It’s the perfect book for every child who has ever felt like an outsider.
Find a Copy of Stand Straight, Ella Kate in a library!
I Am Unique!
About the Book
Written by: Jennifer Vassel
Illustrated by: Penny Weber
“I Am Unique!“ is a story about self-love and sharing your unique gifts with the masses. Erin is the main character of the story. She has a birthmark and a passion for acting. Erin wants to try out for the leading role in her school’s play, but when her best friend questions whether she would suit the role because of her birthmark, she has to decide if she’s going to let a perceived “flaw” get in the way of her dream.
This story lives within all of us. Whether it is a birthmark like Erin’s, crooked teeth, or even something we can’t physically see, we all have something about us that could trigger insecurities. When we live in a time where media largely influences our perceptions of beauty, esteem, and success, we have to be sure that young girls know it’s okay to be who they truly are.
Find a Copy of I am Unique in a library!
The Smallest Girl in the Smallest Grade
About the Book
Written by: Justin Roberts
Illustrated by: Christen Robinson
Hardly anyone noticed young Sally McCabe.
She was the smallest girl in the smallest grade.
But Sally notices everything—from the twenty-seven keys on the janitor’s ring to the bullying happening on the playground. One day, Sally has had enough and decides to make herself heard. And when she takes a chance and stands up to the bullies, she finds that one small girl can make a big difference.
Find a Copy of The Smallest Girl in the Smallest Grade in a library!
Brave Henry Gets Shots
About the Book
Written by: Lindsey Lewis
Illustrated by: Carol Echols
Brave Henry is all about a little boy who has to take injections everyday. He is scared at first, but becomes brave! His bravery helps him know he can accomplish anything!
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Being Small (Isn’t So Bad After All!)
About the Book
Written by: Lori Orlinsky
Illustrated by: Vanessa Alexandre
Being small is the worst! No one ever picks me for their sports team and my feet hurt from standing on my tiptoes all the time. There can’t be anything good about being small…right? Being Small is a picture book about a little girl who is scared to go to school because she’s the shortest kid in the class. She talks about all of the reasons that being short is a challenge, but her mother presents to her funny and unique advantages that only she has because of her height, instilling self-confidence in her. This book is a must-read for any child who has ever fallen behind the curve on the growth chart.
Find a Copy of Being Small (Isn’t So Bad After All!) in a library!
The Littlest Yak
About the Book
Written by: Lu Fraser
Illustrated by: Kate Hindley
Gertie is the littlest yak in her whole herd, and she’s feeling stuck in her smallness – she wants to grow UP and have bigness and tallness!
But when it turns out that there are some things that only Gertie can do, might she come to see that she’s perfect, just the way she is?
Find a Copy of The Littlest Yak in a library!
Not So Small At All
About the Book
Written by: Sandra Magsaman
Introduce the timeless lesson of self-confidence and perseverance in this encouragement book for babies and toddlers! Brimming with adorable illustrations and heartwarming rhymes, this empowering story shares how little things are capable of giant accomplishments. Bees, butterflies, and little children may seem small but are actually full of great strength, incredible potential, and can do anything they set their mind to. This special story with not-so-small impact shows kids that while they may be small, they are also mighty!
Find a Copy of Not So Small At All in a library!
Grady Bear
About the Book
Written by: Deborah Rotenstein, MD
Grady Bear is a children’s book designed to help parents, like you, explain central
precocious puberty (CPP), and its effects, to their child. The narrative, written from the
perspective of a child confiding in her teddy bear, touches upon the physical and emotional
changes that a child diagnosed with CPP may experience. Friendly illustrations and a
conversational tone make this a read that is reassuring for parents and children alike.
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Extraordinary: A Book for Children with Rare Diseases
About the Book
Written by: Evren and Kara Ayik
Illustrated by: Ian Dale
What makes a child with a rare disease extraordinary? Explore the answer to this question while sharing an illustrated conversation with Evren Ayik about what he has learned while growing up with his own rare disease. Written collaboratively by mother and son, Extraordinary! A Book for Children with Rare Diseases opens up a child-friendly discussion about identity, inclusion, and self-concept in light of the challenges and silver linings of living with a rare disease.
Family members and caregivers are invited to share in this conversation and to customize the reading according to each young reader’s developmental needs. The gentle lessons draw on the co-author’s firsthand experience of growing up with an ultra-rare genetic disease and offer young readers a framework for understanding personal identity and how their rare diseases can help shape it in positive ways. Extraordinary! is intended to celebrate the diversity and beauty inherent in all children around the world. Accompanied by sensitive yet realistic, multicultural illustrations created by award-winning artist and children’s book illustrator Ian Dale, the heartfelt messages introduced in Extraordinary! are intended to uplift and encourage any children living with rare diseases to live their very best lives.
Find a Copy of Extraordinary: A Book for Children with Rare Diseases in a library!
Can I See?
About the Book
Written by: Amanda McCoy
When Gavin gets a new tool, he realizes that his visual impairment makes him different from the other kids in his class. Can he show them he’s still a normal kid?
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Adriana’s Adrenal Insufficency
About the Book
Written by: Wendy J Hall
Learn all about Adrenal Insufficiency, an invisible but dangerous disease, as Adriana gives a presentation at her school.
This book is not currently available in library databases.
We’re All Wonders
About the Book
Written by: R. J. Palacio
Countless fans have asked R. J. Palacio to write a book for younger readers. With We’re All Wonders, she makes her picture-book debut as both author and artist, with a spare, powerful text and striking, richly imagined illustrations. Palacio shows young readers what it’s like to live in Auggie’s world—a world in which he feels like any other kid, but he’s not always seen that way.
We’re All Wonders may be Auggie’s story, but it taps into every child’s longing to belong, and to be seen for who they truly are. It’s the perfect way for families and educators to talk about empathy and kindness with young children.
Find a Copy of We’re All Wonders in a library!
Happy in Our Skin
About the Book
Written by: Fran Manushkin
Illustrated by: Lauren Tobia
Is there anything more splendid than a baby’s skin? For families of all stripes comes a sweet celebration of what makes us unique—and what holds us together.
Look at you!
You look so cute
in your brand-new birthday suit.
Just savor these bouquets of babies—cocoa-brown, cinnamon, peaches and cream. As they grow, their clever skin does too, enjoying hugs and tickles, protecting them inside and out, and making them one of a kind.
Find a Copy of Happy in Our Skin in a library!
S is for Surgery
About the Book
Written by: Dyan Fox
Illustrated by: Jen Alliston
Written by a mom whose daughter has endured close to 20 surgeries. This fun, info-packed activity book helps kids (and their parents) prepare for surgery.
This kids surgery book lists, from A-Z, everything that will happen before, during, and after your child’s surgery, so they won’t have any scary surprises.
Each section has practical info kids (and parents) want to know and includes 50 activities kids can do while they’re healing at home or at the hospital-and everything is designed to make surgery less scary.
It’s perfect for kids who will have any kind of surgery-outpatient or inpatient-and was written by a mom whose daughter has endured close to 20 surgeries.
Find a Copy of S is for Surgery in a library!
An Unexpected Outcome: A Heel Prick Test
About the Book
Written and illustrated by: Penny Walter
Congenital Hypothyroidism is a condition affecting the function of the thyroid gland, and can be detected in the newborn screening test. A diagnosis can be scary and confronting. This story is about what the diagnosis meant for us.
Find a Copy of An Unexpected Outcome in a library!
Oliver
About the Book
Written by: Candyce J. Corcoran
Illustrated by: Betsy Franco Feeney
“Oliver” is must-read for all children. It is an inspirational, beautifully-illustrated and well-received book about our, rescued Bichon Frise. Oliver was rescued a few days before he was to be “put to sleep” and diagnosed with Hypothyroid Disease. Copies of “Oliver” have been donated and read at local schools, youth facilities, pediatric offices, children’s hospitals around the country, including St. Jude’s and Ronald McDonald Houses. My hope is that “Oliver” will help ease the pain of childhood illness through the big brown eyes of a sweet dog who shares sickness with them.
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Not Too Big Not Too Small Just Right For Me
About the Book
Written and Illustrated by: Jimmy and Darlene Korpai
The book is geared to teach children that we are all different in some way and we should all celebrate who we are. It explains dwarfism in a simple way and answers some of the most common questions asked by children. The book is meant to be a tool to open up conversation that can be used by anyone at home or in a classroom setting.
A digital copy can be found at Understanding Dwarfism
Find a copy of Not Too Big… Not Too Small…Just Right For Me! In a Library!
Little Imperfections: A Tall Tale of Growing Up Different
About the Book
Written by: Peet Montzingo & Rockwell Sands
Read through the gripping story of Peet Montzingo to see the world from a unique yet relatable perspective on how brave you can be just by being yourself.
Find a Copy of Little Imperfections in a library!
Little Big Sister
About the Book
Written by: Eoin Colfer
Illustrated by: Celia Ivey
Little Big Sister tells the story of Starr, a girl with dwarfism who lives with her mum and younger sister, Babs. As the girls get older and Babs overtakes Starr’s height, Starr understands there is something different about her.
When Starr starts primary school she is at first upset by being shorter than the other children. But with help from her mum and teacher, Starr finds the courage to shine.
A fun and moving story about disability, family and fitting in, told by a major children’s author and illustrated by an artist with dwarfism.
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Louie’s Together Playground
About the Book
Written by: Dr. Nicole Julia
Illustrated by: Jeff Crowther
Meet the third book in The Able Fables® series. Join Louie, a crafty llama with dwarfism who loves to build, construct, and create. Together, he and his friends dream up a plan to bring the very first all-inclusive playground to their town.
Louie’s Together Playground is a celebration of dwarfism, diverse friendships, and inclusive playgrounds.
Find a Copy of Stand Straight, Ella Kate in a library!
Don’t Call Me Names: Learning to Understand Kids with Disabilities
About the Book
Written by: C.W. Graham
Illustrated by: Kristy Lyons
This book is designed to help children understand other children who are in some way different. It teaches children to appreciate these differences and to treat others as they want to be treated. Don’t Call Me Names features several important lessons about respect, compassion, and friendship. Beautifully illustrated and incredibly touching, the text gives a unique twist to things while keeping the kids as the main focal point.
Find a Copy of Don’t Call Me Names in a library!
Rising Love: Bread, Community, and Achondroplasia
About the Book
Written by: Aaron Hallaway
Illustrated by: Pascal Compion
We all have different traits that make us unique—where we are from, the color of our eyes, which hobbies we enjoy—the list goes on. Sometimes we can be afraid to share what makes us special, but Rising Love is a book that teaches us to have confidence in our own unique ingredients.
A digital copy can be read at “intheknow” About Achondroplasia
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Greg and Gulliver
About the Book
Written by: Deborah Rotenstein, MD
We are currently unable to find further information on this book. Please stay tuned!
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Books for Adults and Parents
Little Legs, Big Heart
About the Book
Written by: Kristen DeAndrade
For author Kristen DeAndrade, it doesn’t matter how long your legs are. You can only take one step at a time. Born with achondroplasia, dwarfism, she chronicles her personal journey of facing challenges and breaking barriers in Little Legs, Big Heart. Through diary entries from her childhood journal, combined with a humorously, honest narrative, she shares her sheer determination growing up in the face of adversity and undergoing multiple medical procedures, including extended limb lengthening, which she opted to brave at the age of twelve.
Narrating both the physical and emotional challenges, DeAndrade offers a look at her strength in facing her challenges head on in a story filled with both integrity and interminable sass. Little Legs, Big Heart journeys through tears, laughter, devastation, and hope as it tells about a girl on a mission to find her identity. It gives a new perspective on life’s challenges and shows the world how to meet the varied demands of life with grit and grace.
Find a Copy of Little Legs, Big Heart in a library!
Behind the Scenes of GHD
About the Book
By: Shye Wiese
This book is to give people an inside look of what it’s like to have growth hormone deficiency, a growing disorder not many people understand.
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Swimming Sick
About the Book
Written by: David P. Moore
“I am not much on land, but I am an absolute demon in the water. On terra firma my body feels heavy, cumbersome, clumsy and slow. It complains with every minor movement, much like the contrived tantrum of a five-year-old boy shopping for clothes with his mother. My body, fighting gravity, is an oppressive and depressive vehicle in search of relief, maddeningly incessant in its demands. But in the water . . . oh, in the water my body is an entirely different animal. I am light. Buoyant. Fluid and flexible. In the water I approach a state that eludes me on land. In the water – and only in the water – I experience something akin to grace.”
I had not envisioned entering my fifties spending more time on the couch than mobile, but that’s exactly where I was. Sick, and getting sicker. Battling arthritis, hip disease, prostate cancer, a brain tumor, adrenal insufficiency and pituitary failure I realized I had a choice – I could either give up or I could fight. I chose to fight. This is my story.
This book is not currently available in library databases.
Hormonal Balance
About the Book
Written by: Scott Isaacs, MD, FACP, FACE
First published in 2002, this guide pioneered the idea that hormones play a key role in weight loss and weight control. Writing in clear, simple terms, Dr. Isaacs profiles each hormone system, discussing what can go wrong and how imbalances can affect weight and even perpetuate obesity. The book explains how to reverse symptoms of hormonal imbalance through diet changes and other remedies, and then expands the discussion, teaching readers how to deal with everything from menstrual cycles to diabetes by recognizing and remedying hormonal problems. Updated with a more directive “how-to” approach on balancing hormones, this expanded edition features new research in the area of hungry hormones—including fat, gut, and brain hormones—as well as an easier-to-follow diet and lifestyle program.
Find a Copy of Hormonal Balance in a library!
Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia: A Comprehensive Guide
About the Book
Written by: Peter C. Hindmarsh and Kathy Geertsma
Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia: A Comprehensive Guide addresses how hydrocortisone works, what can go wrong, and how to correct it, also explaining why the timing of doses and measurement of cortisol from a dose is extremely important.
The book provides an in-depth analysis of this disorder for pediatric endocrinologists and primary care providers, allowing them to help patients with an updated model of care and appropriate treatment.
Patients and family members will benefit from the trend-forward information that will empower them to approach their healthcare providers with the expectation of receiving individualized care and treatment for this disorder.
Find a Copy of Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia: A Comprehensive Guide in a library!
The Short Child: A Parents’ Guide to the Causes, Consequences, and Treatment of Growth Problems
About the Book
Written by: Paul Kaplowitz, MD, PhD and Jeffery Baron, MD
For the millions of parents concerned about their child’s height, there is now an authoritative resource of comprehensive information to reassure and guide them in seeking help. This groundbreaking book by two of America’s leading pediatric endocrinologists offers reliable guidance on the diagnosis and treatment of growth disorders, from helping parents determine whether their child’s height is normal to understanding when it’s necessary to seek the advice of a specialist.
Parents will also learn about:
- The role of genetics, nutrition, and hormones in their child’s growth
- The social and psychological impact of short stature
- Methods for estimating the height a child will be as an adult
- Important topics of concern to discuss with their child’s doctors
- Medical conditions that cause short stature
The most up-to-date research on treatment, including the controversial use of growth hormone-so you and your physician can decide what’s right for your child.
Find a Copy of The Short Child: A Parents’ Guide to the Causes, Consequences, and Treatment of Growth Problems in a library!
Thunder Dog
About the Book
Written by: Michael Hingson
An instant New York Times bestseller, Thunder Dog tells the true story of a blind man, his guide dog, and the life-changing power of faith and trust in the face of terror.
When one of four hijacked planes flew into the World Trade Center’s North Tower on September 11, 2001, Michael Hingson, a district sales manager for a data protection and network security systems company, was sitting down for a meeting. His guide dog, Roselle, was at his feet.
Blind from birth, Michael could hear the sounds of shattering glass, falling debris, and terrified people flooding all around him. But Roselle sat calmly beside him. In that moment, Michael chose to trust Roselle’s judgment and not to panic. They were a team.
Find a Copy of Thunder Dog in a library!
Not What I Expected: Help and Hope for Parents of Atypical Children
About the Book
Written by: Rita Eichenstein, PhD
A pediatric neuropsychologist presents strategies to help parents of special-needs children navigate the emotional challenges they face.
As diagnosis rates continue to rise for autism, ADHD, learning disabilities, and other developmental differences, parents face a maze of medical, psychological, and educational choices – and a great deal of emotional stress. Many books address children’s learning or behavior problems and advise parents what they can do to help their kids, but until Not What I Expected: Help and Hope for Parents of Atypical Children there were no books that explain what the parents are going through – and how they can cope with their own emotional upheaval – for their own sake, and for the wellbeing of the whole family.
With compassion, clarity, and an emphasis on practical solutions, Dr. Rita Eichenstein’s Not What I Expected: Help and Hope for Parents of Atypical Children walks readers through the five stages of acceptance (similar to the stages of grief, but modified for parents of special-needs kids). Using vivid anecdotes and suggestions, she helps readers understand their own emotional experience, nurture themselves in addition to their kids, identify and address relationship wounds including tension in a marriage and struggles with children (special-needs and neurotypical), and embrace their child with acceptance, compassion and joy.
Find a Copy of Not What I Expected: Help and Hope for Parents of Atypical Children in a library!
Far From the Tree : Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity
About the Book
Written by: Andrew Solomon
Solomon’s startling proposition in Far from the Tree is that being exceptional is at the core of the human condition—that difference is what unites us. He writes about families coping with deafness, dwarfism, Down syndrome, autism, schizophrenia, or multiple severe disabilities; with children who are prodigies, who are conceived in rape, who become criminals, who are transgender. While each of these characteristics is potentially isolating, the experience of difference within families is universal, and Solomon documents triumphs of love over prejudice in every chapter.
All parenting turns on a crucial question: to what extent should parents accept their children for who they are, and to what extent they should help them become their best selves. Drawing on ten years of research and interviews with more than three hundred families, Solomon mines the eloquence of ordinary people facing extreme challenges.
Elegantly reported by a spectacularly original and compassionate thinker, Far from the Tree explores how people who love each other must struggle to accept each other—a theme in every family’s life.
Find a Copy of Far From The Tree in a library!
Little People : Learning to See the World Through my Daughter’s Eyes
About the Book
Written by: Dan Kennedy
A week after her birth in 1992, Dan Kennedy’s firstborn daughter was diagnosed with achondroplasia, the most common type of dwarfism. Reassured by doctors that Becky would have normal intelligence and a normal life span, Dan and his wife, Barbara, quickly adjusted to the reality of her condition. What wasn’t so easy was grasping people’s attitudes toward those with physical differences.
In Little People, award-winning journalist Dan Kennedy explores dwarfism from ancient times, when dwarfs held an honored position in some cultures, to more modern days when they were featured in freak shows and treated as human guinea pigs by Nazi scientists. While sharing his own poignant experiences, Kennedy works in wonderful passages about dwarf subculture, including the fever pitch of the dating scene during the annual Little People of America convention, and the caste system that exists among those with different varieties of the condition. Kennedy profiles individuals whose small stature has helped them to succeed, and others who have allowed themselves to be exploited and abused.
But the most controversial ground covered in the book is the author’s hard look at medical screening procedures, or designer genetics, that already make it possible for parents to eliminate differences ranging from dwarfism to Down syndrome and could soon target genetic traits such as manic depression and homosexuality. While it is true that there has never been a better time for those who are outside the mainstream, whether one is wheelchair-bound, mentally challenged, or gay, it is also clear that most parents do not wish these differences for their own children. Kennedy argues that there is a cultural value to preserving differences, and that eliminating them may harm society in unpredictable ways.
Find a Copy of Little People in a library!
Dwarf: A Memoir
About the Book
Written by: Tiffanie DiDonato
A memoir of grit and transformation for anyone who has been told something was impossible and then went on to do it anyway.
Tiffanie DiDonato was born with dwarfism. Her limbs were so short that she was not able to reach her own ears. She was also born with a serious case of optimism. She decided to undergo a series of painful bone-lengthening surgeries that gave her an unprecedented 14 inches of height—and the independence she never thought she’d have.
After her surgeries, Tiffanie was able to learn to drive, to live in the dorms during college, and to lead a normal life. She even made time to volunteer, writing to troops stationed abroad, and one of those Marine pen pals ultimately became her husband.
Dwarf is a moving and, at times, funny testament to the power of sheer determination, and has been compared to Andrew Solomon’s Far From the Tree.
Find a Copy of Dwarf in a library!
Life Is Short (No Pun Intended): Love, Laughter, and Learning to Enjoy Every Moment
About the Book
Written by: Jennifer Arnold, M.D. and Bill Klein
Jennifer Arnold and Bill Klein have inspired millions as stars of TLC’s hit show The Little Couple. Though they both have dwarfism, they have knocked down every obstacle they have encountered together with a positive, can-do attitude. The show has featured the lives of Jennifer (a respected neonatologist) and Bill (a successful entrepreneur) from their marriage in 2009, to the launch of their pet shop, to the adoption of their children, to Jen’s overcoming cancer.
Now, for the first time Jen and Bill are letting readers into their private lives with behind-the-scenes, never-before-told stories about how they fell in love, what inspires them, and the passions that drive their success. They will open up about their struggles with cancer, infertility, adoption, and simply living life in a challenging world.
Jen and Bill have a simple purpose in life: make the world a better place through encouragement and education. A must-have for fans of the show or anyone who has ever faced a difficult obstacle, Life Is Short (No Pun Intended) gives readers a glance at what inspires these positive people to approach life with such optimism and share their lives with the public every day.