Children’s chapter book by Christina Wyman. Farrar Straus Giroux: New York, 2023.
More and more kids in the U.S. wear braces. Not all of them, though, are like 7th grader Max Plink, who has to wear braces and orthodontic headgear nicknamed the jawbreaker, because of her severe malocclusion. Even with these treatments, she might have to undergo double jaw surgery later in life. On top of the physical pain from her treatment, Max endures bullying at school because of her dental issues. Also, things are tense at home as her working class family tries to make ends meet, her parents deal with marital issues and alcoholism, and Max navigates her relationship with her younger sister.
This chapter book includes several themes, including finding online patient communities, the impacts of orthodontic care on all members of a low-income family (not just the patient), patient-provider interactions, and becoming/being an orthodontist. Drawing on her own life experiences with major orthodontic work and bullying, Wyman shares in an author’s note at the beginning of the book how in writing it she wanted to help kids see that they are not alone and to show “how hope, love, and friendship really do conquer all.”
Find it at your local library.