Children's Novel - Wonder by R J Palacio

Wonder by R J Palacio is my first children's novel to review. In between books and while waiting for The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory for our next Book Club discussion in March, Riya my 12 year old passed me her school Literature book to read. Being a Potterhead, she has been bugging me to read the entire Harry Potter series! I have been evading her citing housework and the fact that there are like 7 thick books to read,  for a while now. So I couldn't escape this time :)   

​Wonder is a 2012 novel and has received many awards and recognition.

One of Time Magazine's
100 Best Young Adult Books
of all Time

An Entertainment Weekly
10 Great Kids' Books
Selection

​A Parent Magazine's
​Top 10 Book of the Year 

​Wonder is soon to be a major motion picture and is a #1 New York Times Bestseller.

​August Pullman or Auggie as he is fondly called is born with a facial abnormality. Home schooled till 10, his mom decides to send him to a public school in Grade 5. He joins Breecher Prep School, New York with much reluctance. Being a new kid in a school is already hard. Imagine being a new kid with facial difference from the rest?? How can he convince his classmates and schoolmates that he is just like them inside, despite his  E T like appearance?  

​It is a nice feel good book with a lot of lessons to be learnt. Told from the perspectives of Auggie, his sister Olivia, his good friends Jack, Summer and Olivia's best friend Miranda and split into 8 parts.  Some quotes from the novel :

​'Your deeds are your monuments.  We should be remembered for the things we do. They are more important than what we look like or what we say' - Auggie in English class.

​'Funny how sometimes you worry a lot about something and it turns out to be nothing' - Auggie when he gets a hearing aid.

​'...You don't need your eyes to love, right? You just feel it inside you...Its just love, and no one forgets who they love.'  - Auggie's sister Olivia when asked how do people recognize each other in heaven.

​'Kinder than necessary...Because its not enough to be kind. One should be kinder than needed. Wherever you are, whenever you can, if you will try to act a little kinder than is necessary - the world would be a better place'. Mr Tushman, principal of Breecher Prep School giving his graduation speech.

Excellent for pre teens and even 8 - 10 year olds to read. I thought it was  little youngish for a 12 -13 year old, though.  Consisting of 310 pages in medium sized font, Wonder would make a lovely gift for your children, nieces or nephews.

​R J Palacio ​is an American author living in New York. Her chance encounter one day with an extraordinary child in front of an ice cream store made her realize the time has come for her to write her first novel. Wonder is the product of that realization.