We resort to many acronyms to indicate dyslexia, dyscalculia, attention deficit disorders and so on, yet children with learning disorders are commonly considered “dunces”, that is pupils with low intelligence and ability levels who do not benefit from education. This is a dim and unproductive perspective. The book starts with a set of touching stories, experienced and told by mothers, fathers, grandparents, former students who have grown up in the meantime, and teachers who have tackled the problem directly. Thanks to this array of episodes featuring unease, misunderstanding, as well as happy endings, the authors have initiated an exciting and courageous project that considers schools as places where no one is left behind, a renewed institution that – via up-to-date and flexible teaching and pedagogical models – accompanies everyone to adulthood. Indeed, schools can be the best places to grow up.

Giacomo Stella teaches Clinical Psychology at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia and is a founder of the Italian Dyslexia Association.

Marina Zoppello is a psychologist and psychotherapist who worked for many years at the Mondino Neurological Institute in Pavia.