When Maggie Steele loses her older brother, the future seems to close in around her. Life on her family's Kansas farm keeps moving, but Maggie feels stuck in grief, pressure, and self-doubt until she discovers an unlikely way forward: the pole vault.
What begins as a daring escape becomes something much more. As Maggie learns to trust her body, face fear, and push past the limits others place on her, the crossbar becomes more than a mark of athletic progress. It becomes the line between the life she has known and the person she is becoming.
Now in its enhanced Second Edition, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon is an inspiring, page-turning novel for middle grade and young teen readers, especially ages 10 and up and grades 5-8. Ideal for independent reading, classroom discussion, Battle of the Books, team culture, and family conversation, this edition includes a foreword by Olympic champion Katerina Stefanidi and chapter discussion questions by Dr. Melissa I. White, an educator with a doctorate in sport psychology.
Praised as "a fine YA novel about perseverance in sports and in life" by Kirkus Reviews, Maggie is a hopeful, discussion-friendly story about grit, healing, family, and the courage to keep reaching higher. Also available in audiobook, beautifully narrated by Tavia Gilbert.