Review Detail

Benji and his sister Becka are being raised by their Dad and Papa near Bangor, Maine. Benji was born without hands in a country far away, and Becka lives with Down Syndrome. Benji is in fifth grade, and spends a lot of time thinking about superheroes with his best friend, Sam Patel. There's a new neighbor, Izzy, but she is angry about having moved, and won't talk to anyone, which really hurts Becka's feelings. When his fathers take him to see Staff Sergeant Dirk Snider speak about having lost all of his limbs in a bombing attack, Benji is amazed at what Sgt. Snider can do with prosthetic limbs. He agrees to meet with a prosthetist to see if artificial hands might be right for him; when he was younger, it seemed like something that was too stressful, and he's relied on using his feet, lower arms, or strap on utensils since. He's intrigued to meet Wyatt, who lost a limb in a tractor accident, and has been to Camp No Limits, a summer program for children with limb differences. Benji is fitted with a rudimentary 3-D printed hand while he's waiting for his myoelectric ones, so he can get a feel for what it is like. He has some initial success with it, but when the family pet, Kitty, escapes, he feels that perhaps he doesn't deserve the hands. His family and Sam assure him that he is already a super hero, and he learns why Izzy has been so difficult.