2. This book is told in first person, from Aven’s point-of-view. How do you think it would change if it were told in third person? What differences do you notice about the way Aven talks to the reader and the way she writes her blog posts? 

3. When Aven first meets Connor, and he points out that she doesn’t have arms, she says, “Oh my gosh! I knew I was forgetting something today.” How does she use her sense of humor to her advantage?  

4. Compare and contrast Aven and Connor. What traits do they share? What traits make them different? Do you think Connor is as comfortable having Tourette’s as Aven is not having arms? Find specific examples in the text to support your answer. 

5. Think about the setting the author has chosen, Stagecoach Pass. How does it affect the way you read the story? 

Extra Incentive:  A movie and popcorn!  Plus a chance to win gift cards. 

Background Photo by Adrianna Calvo from Pexels

​Her new life takes an unexpected turn when she bonds with Connor, a classmate who also feels isolated because of his own disability, and they discover a room at Stagecoach Pass that holds bigger secrets than Aven ever could have imagined.

​It’s hard to solve a mystery, help a friend, and face your worst fears. But Aven’s about to discover she can do it all . . . even without arms.

 

Dusti's books have won the Reading the West Award, the Sakura Medal, a Golden Kite Honor, the Silver Nautilus Award, and have been nominated for a Cybil and over twenty state awards. 

 

She currently lives in New River, Arizona with her husband, three daughters, a dozen tarantulas, a gopher snake named Burrito, a king snake name Death Noodle, and a cockatiel named Gandalf the Grey.