This week, I’ve read Wonder by R.J. Palacio and I’ve got to say that it is such a sweet book. I loved it because it was so different from the standard YA novels you can find in the market, boy meets girl, girl and boy fall in love – you know the drill. This was a simple story about a boy who just wants to be included despite what society might think of the way he looks. R.J. Palacio presents Auggie in such a way that you come to connect with him, and really root for him as his character development unfolds.
This week, our theme was “first love”. To be honest, I struggle to find this theme in the book other than the Via and Justin love story which I also find really sweet. However this book really is about Auggie so we didn’t discuss the Via and Justin relationship in our group. Overall we agreed that this book is an easy read, Auggie is the main narrator of the story and the language used is fairly simple.
According to Erikson (n.d., pg. 4), during the 5th stage of psychosocial development, young adults feel confused and perhaps insecure about themselves and how exactly they fit in to society. Now Auggie is born with a birth defect which has left his face looking unusual to the “normal” human face. In the book, it is clear that Auggie is in this stage of his psychosocial development.
“I wish every day could be Halloween. We could all wear masks all the time. Then we could walk around and get to know each other before we go to see what we looked like under the masks.” Auggie – Part I, pg. 73
In the quote above we see the constant inner conflict present in Auggie’s character. People look on the outside of him as a person and dislike him as a whole, when underneath the surface he is a great friend and a very funny kid. This quote clearly depicts Auggie’s one and only wish. For his looks not to matter so much, for him to be able to blend in. In the book, Julian starts a game called “The Plague”, where if a kid touches Auggie they have “The Plague”, creating an isolating environment for Auggie (but he eventually becomes friends with Jack and Summer).
Because of this, when discussing the matter of bullying in our group, we found that this book would be very relatable to many teens who are dealing or have dealt with being bullied. And Appleyard (n.d., pg. 21) said that the more common expression of involvement is not so explicitly a matter of emotion, but rather of identification with the characters and the situations they are in.
We then looked at the role of parents and adults in general in the book. Honestly, most of the adults are really nice and supportive towards Auggie. His parents are certainly protective of him but they also support him and encourage him to do things outside of his comfort zone. Mr. Tushman, the principal, is a great character. He tried his best to make Auggie feel welcome and included in the school from day one by getting the boys to show him around the school. And when Julian’s parents ask him to remove Auggie from the school because “he gives Julian nightmares”, he stood up to them and said that it is an inclusive school.
“If every single person in this room made it a rule that wherever you are, wherever you can, you will try to act a little kinder than is necessary—the world really would be a better place.” – Mr. Tushman – Section VIII, pg. 301
So, finally who is this book suitable for? I think that this book is suitable for children aged 12 and up, maybe even younger. I think there are younger children who would be able to identify with Auggie and look up to him. This book is a great palette cleanser from the YA romance novels, and I think it’s very valuable in what the reader can learn from it.
I recommend it!
Literature II: Marianna's blog 