The Lemonade League

The Lemonade League written by Rebecca Rubin Seligson and illustrated by Brigid Malloy is an adorable picture book that follows the adventures of Zee and Nina, two young girls who transform into their superhero alter egos—Incredi-Wheels and Super Sidekick Sister (Triple S)—whenever a good deed is needed. In this book, they team up with their friend Ilan to assist at a newly opened animal shelter in town.

What happens when a local animal shelter needs donations for the animals? The Lemonade League saves the day by problem solving and reaching out to their community to create a fundraiser for this worthy cause. I love the way the author highlights new vocabulary for children such as “donation”, “fundraiser” and “animal shelter”. I also love the way the children work together and problem solve through different solutions.

Check out the author’s free resources here.

Rebecca Rubin Seligson received degrees in both Early Childhood Education (B.A. Yeshiva University) and Literacy (M.A. Teachers College, Columbia University) and has experience teaching English as a Second Language. After her eldest son was born with severe cerebral palsy, Rebecca took time off from teaching in order to care for him. During this time, many, many people suggested she should turn to writing. While most people probably intended for that writing to be a first person account of raising a child with a disability, she decided to go in a different direction: writing children’s books. While raising her son (and a few years later, her daughter), Rebecca noticed a severe lack of disabled representation in children’s literature. Knowing how important it is for children to relate to characters in the books they read, Rebecca decided to write a children’s book featuring a child in a wheelchair. Rebecca took some time to research what specifically to write about, and to learn more and more about what was out there and what was lacking. There were many books out there that educated readers about disabilities and the importance of accepting others who are different than themselves. However, there were not many books that included a child in a wheelchair who just was – no explanation, no discussions of disabilities, just a kid being a kid who happened to use a wheelchair. Wheelustrated Tales was born in an effort to normalize disabilities in children’s literature and to help fill that void. Rebecca has turned Wheellustrated Tales into a way to publish children’s books, as well as advocating for disability inclusion through children’s literature. As a firm believer that exposure to disabilities at a young age (through modalities such as books), Rebecca’s goal is to bring these kinds of books into the hands of young readers in an effort to promote disability awareness and inclusion.