Review: Wonder

Wonder

by R.J. Palacio

 

Book Description:

I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse.

August Pullman was born with a facial deformity that, up until now, has prevented him from going to a mainstream school. Starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep, he wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid—but his new classmates can’t get past Auggie’s extraordinary face.

 

Review:

I really enjoyed this book.  It is interesting and heartfelt and sends a great message to just be kind to other people.  Poor Auggie has a face that sends others screaming, but when he starts regular school, he finds that once people get to know him they can get past that and he makes some wonderful friends. 

 

I found this book to be very realistic in that not everyone came to love Auggie.  Some of the kids he met were still jerks and so were their parents.  Some of the things that people said to Auggie were exactly the type of things that I could imagine people saying in real life.  What I loved, though, was the people who came to stand up for Auggie...and the people that learned from Auggie. 

 

This book is mostly told from Auggie's perspective, making it heartbreaking at times to read, but it is also told at points from the perspectives of his sister, his best friend, and others in his life. This added a bunch of really cool viewpoints that made the story much more real, as well.

 

Recommended to anyone that likes real-life stories and books that explore family relationships.