WONDER

If this book doesn't make you laugh, cry, or both, check your pulse.  

In Part One of Wonder, it becomes clear that August does not have a very high self esteem. He keeps his head down, mumbles, and basically thinks he is repulsive. Although he has a good support system, it's still beyond hard to constantly be stared at, talked about, and avoided.

When finally making the jump from learning at home to Beecher Prep, August and his parents are apprehensive. It turns out that this is for good reason. Kids can be very cruel. As August feared, people didn't really know how to handle seeing him or even being near him. People would make faces of disgust when they thought August wasn't looking and even deliberately torment him by making mean comments or wearing a costume on Halloween he was "supposably"a likeness of. 

Something about Wonder that really gets me is that a boy or girl like August probably really exists. Even though he or she doesn't look like everyone else on the outside, they can still hurt like everyone else on the inside. They can still be hurt when people they thought they could call a friend say they'd rather commit suicide than look the way August does. 

"The tears were so thick in my eyes I could barely see, but I couldn't wipe them through the mask as I walked. I was looking for a tiny spot to disappear into. I wanted a hole I could fall inside of: a little black hole that would eat me up."

I also think about children who don't have deformities but are different in other ways. Someone very close to me was teased as a child because her mom was too drunk to worry about buying her clothes that fit. She had to deal with someone who constantly made fun of her because of something she had no control over. Kids like Julian who go out of their way to make life miserable for others DRIVE ME CRAZY. There is literally no reason why you should hurt people on purpose. 

"When given the choice between being right or being kind, choose kind."

When reading Wonder, I ask myself, "What if August listened? What if he chose to take his own life?" (Thank God he didn't. I wouldn't have been able to handle that kind of book.) The sad truth is that things like that happen all the time, even to kids who having loving parents and a loving sister and friends. All it takes is one person's cruel words to make someone decide they've had enough.

Reading this book has also made me thankful there are people who choose kind. If it weren't for friends and family, I don't know how August would have made it. People can make a difference in a good way, too.

I also think it's interesting that only August and other kids narrate the story. Palacio must have done this so that the importance of children's perspective in is not lost.

MY PRECEPT: Proverbs 20:7, 11 The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him! Even a child makes himself known by his acts, by whether his conduct is pure and upright.

I would like to think I live my life with integrity. To me, integrity is defined by doing the right thing, even if no one is watching. That's an important topic in Wonder because doing what's right can be very difficult. 

Natalie Merchant's "Wonder"