Then We'll Be Happy
When seventeen-year-old Sam, who has cerebral palsy, is once again excluded from a class trip because the school bus is not wheelchair accessible, he decides to start a fundraiser to raise money for an inclusive bus. While the bus may be the catalyst for this story, what unfolds goes far beyond any fundraiser.
As Sam ventures out of his comfort zone, he makes friends in unlikely places while trying new hobbies, and becomes friends with people he previously thought he had nothing in common. Through the story, the reader learns of the different hurdles that disabled people must overcome, and that often what is most disabling is not someone’s condition itself, but societies preconceived ideas and lack of support. The friendship between Sam, Trevor and Aimee, and the other members that join their group as the story progresses, is heartwarming and uplifting. It shows the importance of community and being there for one another through difficult times.
Speaking of such, Carrigan does not shy away from the pains of disability; both the physical and the mental. How your body and life can sometimes feel like it is not your own, how the aches and pains feel ever-present and unending. Yet, in all this, Then We’ll Be Happy, is a story of resilience, hope and realising that happiness is not an endpoint that must be reached, but the people we are surrounded by and the activities we fill our days with.
