4 Stars

Overview:

“When given the choice between being right and being kind, choose kind.”

I don't read a lot of middle-grade, but this broached an assortment of complicated topics with more sensitivity than most 'adult' books and really surprised me.

The main character, August was born with a facial abnormality that not only resulted in dozens of surgeries, but prevented him from attending school until 5th grade. This story revolves around his first year at his new school.

Pros:

The narrators range in from 10 year-olds to highschool-students and the voices reflect this. The kids sounded like kids. The teenagers sounded like teenagers. Everyone had a distinct voice that wasn't limited by age.

The message here is important. I strongly believe this book would be a great gift for a child around August's age, because it opens all sorts of conversations about empathy. It encourages them to think about the ramifications of their actions and the way they view each other, without being overwhelming or needlessly dark.

Via’s story was my favorite and I wasn’t expecting the switch to her POV, but I’m so glad it was there. It’s easy to get wrapped up in August’s story and how it affects him daily—but R. J. Palacio doesn’t let you forget it's the same for his family. This was a more complicated approach than I expected from this book, and I think it was handled with care.

I appreciated that August’s classmates were of all different races, socioeconomic backgrounds and religions.

August was a very precious and loving kid, and it was incredibly easy to root for him.

Cons:

Probably because I don’t read a lot of middle-grade, I didn't fully connect with this the way someone younger (or more willing to enter that mind-set) might have. This story is very wholesome and upbeat, and looking through cynical-adult glasses, I couldn’t help but feel it lost realism because of it.

Via’s boyfriend has his own POV… told without punctuation or capitalization? It was incredibly frustrating to read and actually made his chapters harder to understand. I couldn’t understand why Palacio decided to do this, until I found this quote from her website:

"I remember thinking back then, especially when I would get into the really low notes, that notes on a musical staff looked a little like lowercase letters of the alphabet…Maybe it’s because I’ve been a graphic designer for so many years, but I’m trained to see typefaces and fonts not just as communication devices, but as visual cues for other things. So when it came to writing from Justin’s point of view, because he’s a musician, someone who thinks in musical terms, it just seemed natural for me to use lowercase letters to represent his thoughts in a very visual way. He’s the kind of person who doesn’t talk a lot, because he’s naturally shy, but has a lot going on inside. The running monologue inside his head has no time for capital letters or punctuation: it’s like his thoughts are streaming inside his mind.

...so I understand. But personally, I still didn't like it. I think there were better ways of communicating Justin’s character without font-tricks.

I’m totally nit-picking here, but why did everyone talk about 5th grade being the first year of middle school? Because where I’m from, middle school is grades six through eight and 5th is still elementary.

In Conclusion:

A sweet Middle-Grade story that showcases the importance of empathy through a diverse cast of characters and one adorable little boy.