Big Winner

Reach for this book when your child starts noticing how people treat those who are different or when they are navigating the complexities of social justice and financial ethics. It is a powerful tool for discussing the impulse to protect others and the moral weight of sudden wealth. The story follows fourteen-year-old Skye as she becomes the self-appointed guardian of Digby, a teen with an intellectual disability who has just won a life-changing lottery prize. As predatory adults and opportunistic peers circle, Skye must decide how far she will go to ensure Digby's safety and autonomy. It is a realistic, secular look at empathy and integrity that is perfectly suited for middle schoolers beginning to form their own moral compasses. Parents will appreciate the way it models active upstanding behavior without being preachy.