Our beloved Melody Monroe is back and much more grown up. Remember her from Out Of My Mind where she begins to conquer her body? Melody was trapped in her cerebral palsy body and we watched her come to life as she emerged through her persistence and the gift of technology.

In Out of My Heart, Melody is 12 and “she has basically overcome all the school-related problems that she can with her limitations.” But wait, you haven’t seen “nothing” yet. She decides she, like all kids her age, wants goes to summer camp. At first this seems impossible for a person like a Melody. But it is the 21st century and limitations are there to be overcome. Her loving parents do locate a camp that is designed for kids with severe handicaps. Reader thinks, really... so this is a babysitting type situation? Oh no no no, keep reading.. Melody is excited and of course apprehensive as she prepares to make the two hour trip from the security of her home for the next week. She’s in a completely different environment, for the very first time, without her support group. This camp, is highly designed for children with disabilities, Melody immediately meets a fiercely protective ally in her one-on-one camp counselor Trinity, whom Draper describes as “kind and loving and no-nonsense.” In addition to activities like horseback riding and ziplining (the details of which Draper carefully researched), campers attend a nightly campfire, where heart felt discussions necessary to 12 year olds take place. Melody makes friends, she even meets a boy who makes her heart flutter. Her camp stay is not without some problems, but it proves to be all and much more she had hoped.

Do not anticipate action in this book rather it is about the joy a severely handicapped girl gets to experience.

By reading more about Draper’s newest book, II learned that Inspiration for the book’s cover came from “the idea of a firefly being set free from a jar, lighting up as it flies free. This is the perfect metaphor for how Melody herself grows and how her own inner joy brightens as she bravely undertakes new experiences at the camp.

What a remarkable book as was Draper's previous book. Melody, who has cerebral palsy, is an amazing human being. Through the use of a Medi-Talker, she has the opportunity to converse by typing out her words and feelings. The students in my Media Center devoured Melody's first adventure. She conveyed to my older elementary school students that she was a person like them and had feelings and wants like they did. Melody's bravery and determination came across so fittingly.
The story allowed my readers to command an understanding of someone different from them but who turned those differences into something positive. What a lesson to learn and how beautifully it was written.
A wonderful read!

In this sequel to Out of My Mind, Melody Brooks goes to summer camp and has experiences that she will never forget. After having a tough time at school, she is finally able to connect with a community of kids like her, make new friends, and feel like she belongs.

This was an amazingly sweet book, as Melody is able to experience so many things thanks to camp accommodations. She is able to ride a horse, zip, swim, paint, and finally feel more like herself. While this book is not plot heavy, it is a celebration of who Melody is. She finally gets to experience joy and belonging after her trials in the first book. This was a great summer read that I will be recommending to old and new readers alike.

With the help of her Medi-talker and her wonderfully supportive family, Melody is living the fullest life she can within the constraints of her cerebral palsy. However, even though she's practically a teenager she has missed out on lots of life experiences. So, she does her research and finds a summer camp for kids like her that will let her tick off a ton of boxes over the course of a week: sleeping away from home, swimming, horseback riding, and even getting her first crush. The plot is pretty low-key, as Melody gradually builds confidence by repeatedly confronting novel experiences and overcoming her trepidation.

Out of My Heart is an adorable follow-up to Out of My Mind which I read several years ago and is popular with students in my fourth grade classroom. Readers will enjoy continuing Melody's journey to a summer camp making friends and trying new things she never thought were possible - swimming, dancing, zip lining and horseback riding to name a few. This book is great for kids to be exposed to all different types of children with ranging abilities and see all that they are capable of doing when given the chance and opportunity. It is incredible that camps like this exist for kids, and I loved reading about Melody finally feeling comfortable and confident finding others who understand what she is going through and can relate to her experiences.

This was such a wonderful read!! We had read the first book for a read aloud in the classroom. This book was like getting back in touch with an old friend. To see Melody, her family, and new friends and was a really nice thing. The book spoke wonderfully about the main character being allowed to come out of her shell.

Everyone thought she was weird, unsmart, and unaware-but that is not at all what Melody is like. Melody is definitely aware of her surroundings and is really smart, observant, and logical. After the first book, Out of My Mind, Melody is living her life, happy and content. Before school ended, Melody’s friends were talking all about summer camp, and Melody realized she wanted to go to a summer camp, but she didn’t think it was possible. She began to research tons of different camps, in order to find one that she would like and be able to go to. She finally finds one and tells her mom, desperately hoping she can go, and wanting it more and more. The camp offers activities and is specially made and organized for kids with disabilities. Melody really wanted to go, but as soon as she gets there, she isn’t so sure. She gets a personal helper, and a cabin full of girls who understand what it is like to be judged and avoided. Melody isn’t sure she likes it there and is terrified of the upcoming horseback riding, she knows she will sink when swimming, and she is intrigued when a counselor says they will have the chance to “fly”. After swimming, and “flying” Melody gets closer with her cabin mates, and realizes this is where she is meant to be. They all get what it’s like, and they each have their own stories. Melody finally found people who truly understood, and she finally found true friends. Melody also meets a boy, who she may like and who may like her. Incidents with horses, trying to stay afloat, and wishing they could just talk are all a part of the adventures Melody has with her new friends. After a horse incident, true friends, a maybe crush, and new experiences, Melody is sure she wants to come back to do it all again.

This is a touching book that shows that you should never judge a book by its cover. People need to read this to realize this and read this book, and Out of My Mind, to understand that just because people look different and are different than you, doesn’t make them unsmart, weird, or outcasts. This is a book about a girl who finds where she loves and who finds friends who love her, and it needs to be read. It’s filled with joy, drenched in friendship, dotted with sadness and understanding, and has a hint of mild fear and action. This is a must-read and should be read by the world because there is so much judgment that doesn’t even need to be spoken to be heard, but this book could open the eyes of people. Melody is such an amazing character because she has so many experiences but she powers through, and all her thoughts are described beautifully in this book. Melody’s friends and their experiences were all touching and heartbreaking. This would be a great book to read in a book club because the members could offer many different points of view, but reading it individually is great too. More people should read this, so if you do read this, tell people you know and read Out of My Mind too!

Read and reviewed by a member of Canton Public LIbrary's Teen Advisory Group - Annie, Age 14

Often sequels don’t live up to original books. Out of My Heart certainly does. Draper has created a world all children can recognize, if not personally, from books or movies. Into this world of summer camp, Draper places Melody, our survivor from Out of My Mind. Melody has cerebral palsy and this special camp provides methods for kids like Melody to experience all the fun things associated with sleep-away camps.
This story is uplifting from beginning to end. There is no overarching dramatic plot, which I appreciate as Melody suffered enough in the first book. Draper simply illuminates the world of special needs kids who just want to be kids; and how inventive adults have created tools to help these kids do just that.
The two books should be read in order to truly understand where Melody began and to appreciate where she has landed. And finally, be sure to read the acknowledgments at the end.
I received this book as an ARC from Netgalley.

Like many, I was eager to learn more about Melody, having fallen in love with her in Out of My Mind, but I was soon deep into reliving my own camp experiences many years ago as a 12 year old in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. At first I thought this story would help young people with special needs find the confidence to take that first step toward independence. Then I thought this is a great book for mainstream kids to gain empathy. But finally I realized this is a book for ALL kids to savor the pleasure of trying new experiences and making new friends.
The narrative of Melody was clearly written with love and understanding by a skilled author, but it was also a truly authentic voice of a young awkward girl. And let’s face it, not all handicaps are visible or come with a wheel chair.
My only criticism arises as a result of several scenes in which the campers have to deal with a snake and a skunk. The level of hysteria seems way out of proportion to the incident. I realize even adults don’t like unexpected meetings with skunks and snakes, but the questions the girls asked seemed more like those of a 7 year old than a 6th or 7th grader. Are we meant to think that they are intellectually challenged as well as physically? That is just a small question in what is otherwise a masterful story. Like Melody and her friends, I cried when they had to say goodbye. And it was exactly what I remember from my summers at Rowe Camp.

As a school librarian, I don’t have time to read every book even though I’d like to! . When I Read Out of My Mind, also by Sharon Draper, I couldn’t stop talking about it. I think it’s a book everyone should read. Out of My Heart continues the story of Melody as she grows and wants to spread her wings. This is also a must-read book. Go to camp with Melody and watch her not only find her wings but spread them wide.

After the author’s book Out of My Mind, which was so powerful and poignant in so many ways, I expected no less from Out of My Heart. It recounts Melody’s experiences at a special summer camp. However, I have to say that I was very let down. The meat of the story was just that- a recounting of her camp experiences. I kept waiting for the climax, conflict, drama... I didn’t see it. I was expecting that Melody’s needs/ disabilities would be the background of the plot, but not the plot itself. Each activity she faced followed a similar pattern- being nervous or excited about it, then enjoying it. Yes, each camper’s unique needs were presented in a positive light- but a book merely showing this to us isn’t doing Melody, or kids like her, justice. I love Sharon Draper’s writing- I just really expected more.

Any fan of Out of My Mind is going to love this book about Melody attending a summer camp for kids with various disabilities. It was pure joy to read about Melody having an amazing week surrounded by new experiences and new friends. This book will be in high demand in elementary and middle schools the second it comes out.

What a beautiful story!!! I forgot how much I missed and loved Melody. This book was just as good if not better than the first book. I am going to highly recommend this to teachers to read aloud. I hope it opens the eyes of students toward the feeling of other with disabilities. Loved, loved, loved this book!

Fans of Out or my Mind will be thrilled that Sharon M. Draper has written a sequel. In Out of My Heart, Melody embarks on a summer adventure at Camp Green Glades. At this camp for differently-abled kids, she gets to experience many thrilling firsts like swimming, flying, and horseback riding that most kids take for granted. Though more lighthearted than the original book, this sequel still shows that Melody is full of heart and a force to be reckoned with.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

A follow-up to Draper's Out of My Mind. Though I definitely enjoyed the first book more, this was a solid middle grade read. Draper pretty much nailed the inner monologue of a middle schooler, and while the writing was pretty light and fluffy, I enjoyed reading about Melody's heartwarming adventures at summer camp. 3.5 stars.

Melody Brooks wanted to be like every other twelve-year-old. She wanted to attend a week-long overnight summer camp filled with all the fun activities her peers enjoy; however, not all camps can accommodate Melody's needs. Because of her special needs, Melody didn’t believe her parents would ever agree to send her to camp. She had never even spent a night away from them. Without telling her parents, she began researching. When she found a pamphlet for Camp Green Glades, she knew she found the perfect camp. Convincing her mom and dad wasn’t easy, but it was well worth all her efforts. Sharon Draper has done it again. Every reader will be in awe of the fears Melody overcomes to do the impossible: swim, zip line, and horseback ride. Even more, readers will fall in love with the friendships Melody forms around the campfire. This coming-of-age novel is perfect for any middle-age reader.

I was so excited when I learned that Sharon Draper wrote another book featuring the amazing Melody Brooks! This time out Melody attends a summer camp and experiences a host of new activities like zip lining, swimming, boating and horseback riding. She also makes real, true friends. Absolutely wonderful!

I loved Out of My Mind so much that it has been either a read aloud or book club choice in my classroom for years. My heart pitter-pattered when this ARC for the sequel arrived in my inbox. This beautiful continuation of Melody’s story made me cry tears of pride and happiness several times. I devoured this book in one serving because I couldn’t even get up to make my morning coffee until I was done.
Melody, a middle schooler with cerebral palsy, uses her impressive research skills and discovers a camp for differently-abled kids. Her supportive, but nervous parents allow her to attend and this place takes her out of her comfort zone and improves her confidence by leaps and bounds. She has never walked and only a year ago was able to express herself in words using assistive technology-her Medi-talker, Elvira. At camp, Melody zip lines, swims, boats, rides a horse, and does other activities she never imagined she’d ever do.
Most importantly, Melody forms friendships with her counselor, her cabin mates, and other campers. She even experiences a little crush for the first time. Every little victory she had made me cry or grin from ear to ear as I remembered how she was treated in the last book by her classmates and even a doctor.
This book made me wish some of my students had opportunities such as this. It caused me think about making our school playground more inclusive. I’d love to see a sequel where Melody becomes an advocate for students to help them all have accessibility and uses her brilliant mind to help others feel like they can do anything. I can’t wait to share this book with my students!

This book deserves more than five stars! What an awesome return Melody has in this sequel. After filling out so much paperwork and answering many questions, Melody is going to summer camp for a week. She finds it feels good to hang out with kids who are like her. After realizing she has the opportunities to zip line, go on a pontoon boat ride, horseback ride, swim in a pool,, make music, and make messy art, she thinks the “ folks who invented this place had to be geniuses” and I agree. What a great place with counselors for every child there 24/7. As Melody approaches many of the fun and possibly challenging things to do, she wonders can I do it? There’s even a dance and everyone has so much fun. You can feel the pride and happiness she experiences when she tackles everything with such positivity. Loved this book so much!

Many thanks to the publisher for the e-ARC of this sequel to Sharon Draper's Out of My Mind. Out of My Heart follows Melody as she embarks on a trip to summer camp. Being her first trip away from home, she's excited and nervous to see how Camp Green Glades is going to work to meet her needs. What she finds is a world she never knew was available to her. Swimming, horseback riding, zip lines, and most importantly, friends. are all things Melody experiences for the first time at this incredible place. I think kids will love this book, and can't wait for it to be released to the world.