Wonder

by R. J. Palacio

'My name is August. I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse.' Auggie wants to be an ordinary ten-year-old. He does ordinary things - eating ice cream, playing on his Xbox. He feels ordinary - inside. But ordinary kids don't make other ordinary kids run away screaming in playgrounds. Ordinary kids aren't stared at wherever they go. Born with a terrible facial abnormality, Auggie has been home-schooled by his parents his whole life. Now, for the first time, he's being sent to a real school. All he wants is to be accepted - but can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, underneath it all? Astonishingly powerful, WONDER is a read you'll never forget.

• ISBN10: 037589988X
• ISBN13: 9780375899881
• Publish Date: 14 February 2012 (first published 1 January 2012)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 237
• Language: English

Reviews

[Briana @ Pages Unbound]

DNF

I might pick this up to finish skimming the book later, but the audio book takes 8 hours, and I'm not invested in it enough to listen to 4 more hours.

[Leah]

Wonder is one of those books you know you're going to love. Ever since Jill Mansell and Matt Dunn recommended it it's been on my Amazon Wishlist and i finally got around to getting myself a copy. I read it as soon as it arrived and it blew me away.


Auggie Pullman doesn't look like you or me, in fact he doesn't even look at all normal and for this reason alone he's never been to a proper school, until now. Auggie's journey through fifth grade is inspiring and uplifting and the characters who don't judge Auggie make me believe in the wonder of humanity again.


I just thought this was a truly amazing book. It made me cry, it made me cheer, it made me want to punch the air in triumph because of how Auggie faces the world. Kids like him are an inspiration and it's a shame the society sees them as outcasts or freaks. This is a book everyone should read; it's a book you can learn a thing or two from and it's just bloody amazing.

[leahrosereads]

This book was awesome! I rooted for little Auggie the ENTIRE time, and I kept hoping that he wouldn't have to deal with the coldness that sometimes hits us all in this world. But, when Auggie does have to go through with LIFE, he does it with amazing strength. He's still 10, so of course, we see a bit of immaturity, but in general, the kid has more grace, understanding, and strength than any other character in the book.

I fell in love with the story in the very beginning. I cried, laughed, got annoyed, and laughed some more.

The characters are well written and I thought seeing Auggie in all of the different points of views was awesome.

I do have to say one thing, though: I hated Justin's POV. I have a really hard time reading when there is no capitalization in a sentence. The words honestly blur together for me, so I ended up grazing over his POV a bit, which was a bummer, because he did something really awesome in his section. But I got the gist that he was a good guy, and that's fine with me.

I really recommend reading this book! It was excellent.

[rakesandrogues]

There is always some hesitation in my part when picking up middle grade novels, because there's always the chance where the novel is not as accessible to older readers. I didn't have a problem with WONDER by R.J. Palacio in that aspect. I think that Palacio does a wonderful job of making her writing appeal to readers of all ages.

What surprised me the most about WONDER by R.J. Palacio is the impact it had on me in terms of my thinking of how I act towards someone with a disability or a handicap. Auggie is such an inspiring character to read about. His life is hard - there's no doubt about that. And it made me sad to read about him. But Auggie is such a fighter and he tries so hard no matter how many obstacles get in his way. Auggie made me put my problems into perspective. My problems seemed so petty in comparison to the life that he lives. Furthermore, WONDER by RJ Palacio made me think about how I conduct myself in public. WONDER will make me think twice next time I see someone with a disability or a handicap.

At first, I wasn't sure how I felt about the switching perspectives throughout the novel. For the most part, the novel is told from Auggie's point of view, but randomly switches to other characters such as his friends. My dislike for the multiple perspectives was short-lived; I fell in love with Palacio's writing style and I loved seeing Auggie from other people's eyes. My love for him as a character grew even more.

The ending of WONDER by RJ Palacio gave me such a warm and fuzzy feeling. As a reader, I felt like I grew so much with Auggie on this emotional roller coaster. His character was developed so well throughout the book and I wanted to give him a massive congratulatory hug at the end.

WONDER by RJ Palacio is the kind of middle grade novel that should be read by all. It's not just a "children's" book.