Ruined by Reading

Lightning Girl is 12 year-old Lucy Callahan’s screen name in the math forum she loves. Ever since she was hit by lightning at 8 years old, she’s been a math genius. She’s also been homeschooled due to her academic differences and her OCD tendencies. When Lucy’s beloved uncle visits, he and Lucy’s Nana realize that, as smart as Lucy is, she’s missed out on part of her childhood. And so Nana insists that Lucy drag herself away from her computer and experience normal life for 1 year. Lucy’s germ phobia and repetitive sitting behavior don’t make fitting into middle school easy, but luckily, she quickly makes one friend who doesn’t seem to mind her oddities. As Lucy navigates the tricky middle school social world of cafeteria tables and group projects, she will eventually learn the meaning of true friendship, and find out just how far out of her comfort zone she’s willing to go for a friend.

This books greatest strength is in the main character’s voice, which, along with the snide, age-appropriate humor, quickly endears the reader to a character that might otherwise be a little hard to like.