The Double Life of a Wheelchair User
“It was quite an ordinary day when Will discovered he would be going to two schools”...
...but go he does, and it is the beginning of an extraordinary adventure for the young writer of Marlowe Park. For a whole year, Will is at two schools at once. And things grow more complicated, once he has a girlfriend at each.
With friends and enemies at both schools, teachers to please and bullies to beat, from the Bicycle Reflector Club to the Santa delivery, Will is in for a busy and exciting year. But one day, he has to decide where finally he wants to be...
A fun, enlightening collection of twelve linked short stories taking place in both a mainstream school, and a school for students with disabilities. The book is based on author Rob Keeley’s own childhood experiences of transferring from special to mainstream school.
Published 28 November 2025. Pre-order now - see links below!
“Will is a keen player of video games, a conscientious student, a slightly annoying brother and a supportive friend. But most of all, he is an aspiring writer. English is his favourite lesson at his school, Marlowe Park, and one at which he excels. This hasn't gone unnoticed by his headteacher, Mrs Howarth, and she has suggested to Will and his mum that he spends a couple of afternoons a week at a different school, Station Road, where his ability might be better extended.
Will is excited and also, unsurprisingly, a little apprehensive. New environments are always testing and it's hard to go from being a big fish in a little pond to a much bigger pond with a lot more fish. But Will also feels a special responsibility. Because Will uses a wheelchair and Marlowe Park is a SEND school while Station Road is a mainstream school. If Will's placement goes well, it might lead to more integration between the schools and show that kids like him can flourish in the mainstream.
This all sounds rather heavy, doesn't it? Well, don't worry. The Double Life of a Wheelchair User isn't heavy at all. Will navigates his double life fairly well, albeit with a few hiccups, such as balancing his friendships with two girls, and he has lots of adventures and mishaps - an hilariously disastrous school trip, a Santa Claus mix up, a competition to collect the most cereal box tokens. He also has to deal with some challenges including bullying, and becoming a bit too big for his boots. It's a fun read with serious undertones rather than a serious read with a few light moments.
As you all know by now, we here at Bookbag Towers are big fans of Rob Keeley. He writes lovely, accessible, entertaining stories full of the real bread and butter of children's lives. He gets kids and we give a big thumbs up to all his work. But we're going to give The Double Life of a Wheelchair User our biggest thumbs up yet. It's such an ordinary story of a boy who loves to write, has friends who he sometimes lifts up and sometimes lets down because he's not perfect, and who has all the quotidian worries - including juggling two girls who like him! - that any child has. He's also a wheelchair user and while this is intrinsic to the story, it's Will's story, not a wheelchair's story. I love this careful balance of educating readers about life in a chair and avoiding patronising or lecturing them, which Keeley navigates with ease.
When Will gets bullied, for instance, the bully uses his chair as a tool in the bullying. That's what bullies do - pick a thing that might make you vulnerable or that might cause embarrassment, and use it. But kids in and out of chairs get bullied. To the bully, it doesn't matter what the thing is, just that there is a thing to use. But Keeley makes clear that this particular bully is an equal opportunity offender so readers will see that anyone could be Will and take notice of how it's described and learn lessons in how to respond, whether it's them or someone else who is being bullied.
Some gentle lessons about children with disabilities having challenges to overcome but, notwithstanding them, still have more in common with other children than not, some hilarious adventures, some trials and tribulations and an ending full of optimism. What more could you want in a middle grade story?
Highly, highly, recommended.”
Advance review from The Bookbag
