Wonder has rolled out

 Be still my  heart.  We have FINALLY received our 200 copies of Wonder by RJ Palacio.  I don't want to overstate the case, but this book has the potential to change lives.  I fell in love with Auggie from the get-go. A ten-year-old about to enter public school for the first time after years of homeschooling due to his cranio-facial difference (and ensuing operations).  He's nervous, as we all would be.  Some kids are kind, some are not.  There are some real heartbreaking scenes in this book, I won't lie (not to mention the dog, my God the dog), but it is a story with appeal for all ages.


Personally, I identified with Via. I, too, am the older sister of a brother who has a physical difference that causes insensitive people to gawk.  He is smaller than average.  I had my share of verbal fights with idiots (Actually, I had one a few weeks ago, too.  You're never too old to protect your "little" <he's 42> bro.).  So yes, Via spoke to me.

There's a bully, Julian.   As a reader, we have the opportunity to hear Julian's point-of-view.  I can't say I find him particularly sympathetic, but I do find him human.  As we all are, of course.

We meet Auggie's friends, some so-called friends, parents, teachers...basically, everyone who enters his life.  We meet them through a variety of narrative tools, but the end is the same, glimpses into the lives of others and how one life can affect us all.

The book's theme is taken from Dr. Wayne Dyer, "When given a choice between being right and kind, choose kind."

Thus, RRISD has used our HEB grant money to purchase thousands of copies of Wonder in an effort to get our entire district to read it.  And - exciting - we are hosting the author on Mon., Feb 10th at the Round Rock Sports Complex (it's still being built, we'll be among the first to see it!)

MN has lots of activities planned around this novel.  The first being Auggie's birthday party this upcoming Th., Oct. 11th.  Our students need to check their school gmail accounts for details on how to score an invite.

More to come, so stay tuned!