Skip to main content

R. J. Palacio: Wonder - Wonder Book 1

 Since it came out, Wonder has been highly recommended, and it's been on my to-read list for years. I finally listened to the audiobook, and I really enjoyed it.

Wonder by R. J. Palacio follows the story of August Pullman, a boy with an incredibly rare genetic mutation that caused his face to form incorrectly with some other additional health issues. Though Auggie wasn't supposed to survive for long after his birth, he pulled through and lives an almost normal life. However, the deformity to his face causes a lot of people to stare and make fun. Auggie starts school at Beecher Prep Middle School as a fifth-grader, and though he has never attended a regular school before (he was always homeschooled), he does extremely well academically. The story follows Auggie's crazy first school year.

I loved Wonder. My students also greatly enjoy this book. It's a fast, simple read with a really enjoyable plotline. I loved the characters of the novel, and how it switches among points of view. I loved Via's opening lines, describing August as the sun, and everyone else in their lives as a planet, because that is how the story is written. I did love seeing how much Auggie grew over the course of the year.

I think the parts that bugged me were around the climax. The fight between Jack, Auggie, and the 7th graders all felt a little contrived, and I didn't find it as realistic as the rest of the book. I appreciated the way the other boys stepped in for August, but why were they allowed to wander that far? If the park didn't want kids in the forest, shouldn't there have been more than just a temporary barricade that they went around easily?

I was also bothered by the principal of Beecher Prep giving information that is likely somewhat confidential to other parents (when he told Julian's parents some things about August). Confidentiality is a really strict rule in schools. Perhaps it's not governed as well in a private school? But as a public school teacher, I could get into some trouble for disclosing that kind of confidential information about a student.

At any rate, Wonder was an incredible book with a wonderful message. It radiates this idea that we need to be kind, not pitying (as some of the characters are in the novel).



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Brene Brown: Daring Greatly

Brene Brown is one of my favorite TED speakers of all time. I have listened to her TED talks numerous times and used them in my classroom each year. I love her message: that we can't have success, innovation, change, and creativity without first having vulnerability. I love that she is seeking to demystify vulnerability and teach what shame is and how it destroys our ability to accept ourselves and others. I am not normally into the self-help kind of books, but of the books I've read this year, this is one of my favorites! Daring Greatly  by Brene Brown discusses the concepts of shame and vulnerability and how we need vulnerability, but not shame. She gives strategies for combating shame and becoming "shame resilient." She gives strategies to use as parents, teachers, friends, and spouses. For one thing, I love Dr. Brown's Texan accent (she narrates the audiobook herself! 💗). Her voice and personality are all throughout this book. She is not afraid to use persona...
Post a Comment
Read more

Brandon Sanderson: The Lost Metal - Wax & Wayne (Mistborn Era 2) Book 4

 I finally finished Mistborn era 2! I loved this series so much (though I think I love era 1 the most still). This story was an incredible addition to Scadrial's story. In this final installment, we pick up in Elendel at a time of great uncertainty. The outer cities are threatening war, their tentative alliance with the Malwish is falling apart over the Bands of Mourning, and Wax is still in the middle of all of it. Now serving on the senate, Wax is desperately trying to help the Elendel nobles maintain peace while hunting the Set. Unsuccessful thus far at locating his sister, the leader of the Set, Wax is still trying to uncover her plans. Can Wax, Marasi, and Wayne uncover the Set's plans before the invasion of Trell crushes Scadrial? This was a fitting conclusion for Mistborn's second era. I loved the character development we saw in each of the characters: Marasi, Wax, Wayne, and Steris. I love the involvement of some era 1 characters (one who I am not going to spoil), a...
Post a Comment
Read more

2022 Reading in Review

 I thought it might be fun to look at my reading challenge from last year and look at what I enjoyed the most. I picked my top 5 favorite books from 2022 to highlight one more time. Choosing only five was actually more difficult than I imagined, since I had a lot of favorites. It was also hard to rank them if I'm completely honest, but here is my list! #5 - The Girl Who Drank the Moon  by Kelly Barnhill I loved this book. I loved the whimsical storytelling style and the plot. I loved the characters and how they were developed. I loved how the author carefully crafted the foreshadowing and how she carefully guided you through the mystery of Xan's memories. Overall, this book was so well written. Even though it was a middle grade book, I found myself unable to put it down. #4 - I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys If you've followed my blog, then you probably know that I don't usually care much for Ruta Septys's writing. It's not that I dislike the stories she tells,...
Post a Comment
Read more