Wonder

Let's start with the good: I thought that Wonder was an amazing and nuanced view of the social intricacies from late elementary school to early high school. By introducing multiple perspectives, RJ Palacio has written one of the most insightful pieces about how people inadvertently become bullies, alienate their friends or switch social groups. It rang very true, and more informed than a lot of the non-fiction references about bullying.

I also liked having a book about someone with a craniofacial anomaly. Too often disability characters in YA are completely sanitized: “normal person in a wheelchair!” style. Auggie was a great and honest portrayal of a kid with Treacher Collins. I know many kids like Auggie in real life, and I think this is the first book that they get about them. I liked that she pulled no punches in describing his surgeries, and his difficulty eating and articulating and also no punches in giving him a personality that went beyond his disability with his love for Star Wars, sense of humor and insight into people's ways of thinking.

But, I didn't love it. Perhaps because I've spent a lot of time with kids with craniofacial anomalies, it didn't have the same newness to me as to a lot of other readers. Or because, as a professional geneticist, I got really distracted by the fact that he has biallelic TCOF1 mutations, or that he has both a new, previously unknown recessive form of Treacher Collins and OAV spectrum. (I'm not sure in what universe someone would make a diagnosis of OAVS, a clinical diagnosis, in a kid with molecularly confirmed TCS, who doesn't have any facial asymmetry, but.) Or that they didn't use the words “Treacher Collins” in the whole book? I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it again: authors who want a geneticist consultant, I'm for hire! Pay me in books.

But honestly, I had two other huge concerns: the first is Auggie winning the community service award at the end. I found this super frustrating and shallow compared to the more nuanced take in the rest of the book. Auggie didn't do any community service just by existing. The “point” of people with disabilities is not to be a fable for children without disabilities to learn from. He's an actual human being who should actually do some community service to get a community service award. That dehumanization really undermined a huge portion of the book for me, and made me feel hesitant to recommend it to children with disabilities.

My other concern is unfair for a book review, but stick with me: they chose a child without a craniofacial anomaly to portray Auggie in the movie? In a world that has thousands of actual children with craniofacial anomalies, who will never ever have a chance to play a protagonist in basically any other movie, and they took a typical kid and put him in disability drag? Overall, that choice, combined with the ending of the book made me really concerned that RJ Palacio doesn't really believe that atypical children are human beings with their own personhood and reason for being, rather than a tool for her to write moralistic novels.

J'ai découvert ce livre grâce à un entretien avec l'auteur(e) publié sur Slate.fr. Dès que j'ai lu l'article, j'ai su que j'allais lire ce livre. Je n'étais pas sûr qu'il me plaise, mais j'étais certain que j'allais le lire et qu'il ne me laisserait pas indifférent. Tout tenait en quelques lignes, dans le résumé du roman tel qu'il était décrit dans l'article :

L'ouvrage raconte l'histoire d'August Pullman, un garçon de dix ans au visage très différent – conséquence d'une maladie causée par une malformation chromosomique – et son parcours, qui le fait quitter le cocon protecteur de la scolarisation à domicile pour atterrir au collège et affronter ses hordes de sauvages.

And I feel ordinary. Inside. But I know ordinary kids don't make other ordinary kids run away screaming in playgrounds. I know ordinary kids don't get stared at wherever they go. If I found a magic lamp and I could make one wish, I would wish that I had a normal face that no one ever noticed at all. I would wish that I could walk down the street without people seeing me and then doing that look-away thing. Here's what I think : the only reason I'm not ordinary is that no one else sees me that way. But I'm kind of used to how I look by now. I know how to pretend I don't see the faces people make.”

But the best way to measure how much you've grown isn't by inches or the number of laps you can run around the track, or even your grade point average – though these things are important, to be sure. It's what you've done with your time, how you've chosen to spend your days, and whom you have touched this year. That, to me, is the greatest measure of success.

Shall we make a new rule of life ... always to be a little kinder than is necessary ? [...] Kinder that is necessary. Because it's not enough to be kind. One should be kinder than needed. Why I love that line, that concept, is that it reminds me that we carry with us, as human beings, not just the capacity to be kind, but the very choice of kindness. [...] Such a simple thing, kindness. Such a simple thing. A nice word of encouragement given when needed. An act of friendship. A passing smile.

I wasn't even sure why I was getting this medal, really.
No that's not true. I knew why.
It's like people you see sometimes, and you can't imagine what it would be like to be that person, whether it's somebody in a wheelchair or somebody who can't talk. Only, I know I'm that person to other people, maybe to every single person in that whole auditorium.
To me, though, I'm just me. An ordinary kid.
But hey, if they want to give me a medal for being me, that's okay. I'll take it. I didn't destroy a Death Star or anything like that, but I did just get through the fifth grade. And that's not easy, even if you're not me.

He's just a kid. The weirdest-looking kid I've ever seen, yes. But just a kid.

I loved this book. I read it when I was in 4th grade and love it, and then last year we had to read it for an English assignment, and I started remembering how much I love the book. I also saw the movie, but it was, obviously, missing stuff from the book, so I didn't like it as much. My favourite character is Via because she is kind of sassy and an introvert who I can relate to a lot.

I loved this book. Auggie is such a loveable character. He's so funny! That being said, I gave teh book only four stars because of it being somewhat triggering for me at times. I'm disabeld myself and honestly was a little jealous of Auggie at times. I'm not sure I can put my finger to it, but, I felt jealous of all the people sticking by Auggie in the end and the school's totally welcoming attitude. At the same time, Via's attitude, while very realistic, was also a bit triggering.

Overall though, I loved the multiple viewpoints. I liked the character development, for example with Summer and Jack.

Didn't hate this book, but wouldn't read it again and would only recommend it to younger readers. I enjoyed the change in narrators, each having their unique voice and experiences. I didn't enjoy the short chapters, as I felt as though it created a feeling of superficiality, and maybe that's why I didn't enjoy this book as much as others–I wanted deeper connections and thoughts, but the characters are young and often don't have deep thoughts.

[b:Wonder 11387515 Wonder R.J. Palacio https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1545695751l/11387515.SY75.jpg 16319487]August is Officially my favorite month. After reading this I can honestly say that this will be the easiest 315 pages you will ever read and you will love every page. I picked this up because one of my favorite authors had moved it up on her kindle and it inspired me to give it a go. Full disclosure I did watch the movie first this time around and don't regret it shockingly. Wonder is about a boy August Pullman who is registered into the 5th grade at Beecher Prep. You would think that wouldn't be an issue, wrong Auggie was born with a facial that makes life and friendships much harder. He was home schooled up until this point and the adventure of 5th grade is a scary one for August. Firstly, what I loved most is that it touches on real 5th grade behavior. August is faced with real genuine hardships and real friendships in the case of Jack and Summer, and real bullies in Henry and Julian. I loved how each chapter had its own voice and it gave the reader a real well-rounded understanding of who August is. I also enjoyed the family unit that he was given. It made me appreciate that I am very lucky to have a solid family unit. I think that after reading this you will either relive your grade school bullying or you will come out feeling kind and up lifting to those around you. If it is the first out come, I am sorry you had to experience that if it is the second then I suggest you pass this book on to someone who can use it. I am a big believer in paying it forward and everyone needs to feel the Wonder of this book.

August “Auggie” Pullman is a great 10-year old kid, loves Star Wars, academically gifted, has a devoted dog, a nice older sister, very supportive parents, he's friendly – big-hearted, really. After years of being homeschooled, he's off to a private school for Middle School (when, btw, did Middle School start in 5th grade?). Oh, sure, one other thing: he has a genetic disorder resulting in severe facial abnormalities.

Kids being kids – this is clearly fraught with peril. It'd be tough for a kid to enter this atmosphere from his background no matter what – but in Auggie's case, things are magnified. We follow Auggie through that rocky first year through various perspectives – his, his sister's, his friends', his sister's boyfriend's, and so on. I frequently get tired of this whole multiple perspective schtick, but Wonder is one of those cases where it works. By seeing the same event (occasionally, not every event) trough various eyes, we get a much better – and richer – picture of Auggie's trials and triumphs.

Yeah, this is written for 4-8 grade reading level, and as such, not the most sophisticated writing or plot. Yeah, this has all the makings of an After-School Special (that's a term that's about to lose all meaning, isn't it?). Yeah, the plot is pretty predictable. Fair enough. But R. J. Palacio pulled it off – it all works – all the kids seem real, the struggles his sister has are believable, the varied emotions (noble and not) are realistic. It's a song sung well, no matter how old or simple it is.

Wonder's fun, occasionally funny, and heartwarming. Read it, and get your kids to read it, too.

I've been wanting to read this book for months. I've seen its mysterious cover on tens of blogs. I've read tens of reviews of it, all of them raves.

And now I've finally gotten around to it. Wow. All I can say is, If you want children to understand what it's like to be different, share this book with them. Powerful story.

Resenha do blog Sincerando.com, escrita por Sarah Sindorf

“Sabe o que eu acho? A única razão de eu não ser comum é
que ninguém além de mim me enxerga dessa forma.”

August, ou Auggie, é um menino normal, gosta de sorvete, de brincar, de Star Wars, de sua cachorrinha Daisy. Uma coisa o difere dos outros garotos: sua aparência. Auggie herdou geneticamente uma doença que junto com outros problemas lhe causou uma severa deformidade facial. Ele nunca frequentou à escola e passou por várias cirurgias e tratamentos para tentar melhorar seus problemas de saúde, mas quando chega aos 10 anos e sua saúde tem uma melhora, seus pais o colocam na escola.

Começa então uma nova vida para Auggie. Ele tem até esse momento um melhor amigo que vive em outra cidade e não convive muito com as crianças da vizinhança. Terá que enfrentar várias crianças desconhecidas, professores, pais, e lidar com suas reações à sua aparência.

O livro é dividido em oito partes, três são narradas por August e as outras por outros personagens. Achei muito interessante essa divisão pois podemos avaliar uma situação pela visão de mais de um personagem, o que torna a cena mais completa e complexa. Outro ponto também é que podemos nos informar previamente de coisas que Auggie ainda não sabe ou explicações de coisas que ele soube.

A vida de Auggie é complicada, mas também carrega essa complicações para sua família. Ele mora com seus pais e sua irmã, Via, e sua doença afeta diretamente a eles também. Vemos no livro a evolução e o amadurecimento de August com a escola, mas percebemos também essa mesma mudança em seus amigos e sua família.

A história carrega assuntos pesados e dolorosos de uma forma mais leve e às vezes até divertida. Sua família é bem unida e amorosa, e Auggie tem apoio incondicional de seus pais. Via é um personagem forte, mas com suas fraquezas, normais da sua idade. Os personagens são realistas, e isso torna a trama muito mais interessante. Gostei de ver as reações de Auggie frente ao bullying e sua coragem ao lidar com os problemas do dia-a-dia e de sua deficiência. É um exemplo a se espelhar.

É um livro muito emotivo e emocionante, mas ao mesmo tempo a escrita é simples e fácil de acompanhar. Um ótimo feito para a primeira obra da escritora. Espero que ela continue a escrever e pretendo ler o próximo livro que for escrito.

Recomendo esse livro a todos. Crianças tem que ter essa noção do que o bullying pode fazer com alguém, e de como reagir a isso. Pais deveriam saber que um problema com seu filho não é o fim do mundo, e que as coisas podem ser superadas e transformadas numa situação normal. E pessoas com deficiência tem que saber que são seres humanos capazes de tudo que quiserem e merecedoras de respeito e amizade como qualquer outro.

Link da resenha: http://www.sincerando.com/2013/04/extraordinario.html