First off, I'd like to thank Weebly for the cool new update, letting me do things like putting a map in here! This is approximately where Auggie and his friends live.
Anyway. So you know that feeling when you realize a book has a sequel? (Or that feeling of horror when you realize the book you hated was a series, and you're basically forced to read the rest?) Well, this isn't actually a sequel but even better, a companion book! It actually has a sweet little intro by Palacio herself. Another interesting thing is that I borrowed this from my English teacher and she has one of the advance copies sent to book reviewers! I thought maybe she was like me, had a book blog or posted on Goodreads or something. (That might also explain the number of typos I found). Anyway, so enough about that. The book has three sections: The Julian Chapter, Pluto, and Shingaling. Told by Julian (obviously), Christopher and Charlotte respectively.
The Julian Chapter:
Just a little warning here: I was halfway through my review of this section when I realized I had accidentally skipped the last three chapters of the section. Oops! So a few words of advice. Try to actually finish the book before writing a review on it. XD
Palacio brings up some interesting points in her intro about Julian. "But I loved the idea of exploring Julian's character in a short book of his own---not to exonerate his actions, since his actions in Wonder are reprehensible and indefensible, but to try to understand him better."
So I dove into this chapter, expecting some excuse about his family life and in the end for Julian to regret his actions, blah blah blah. And yeah, there was a bit more to his story that I didn't expect. Julian has bad nightmares and apparently Auggie triggered these nightmares again. Again, I have to admit, Julians mom is so horrid she's unrealistic. Maybe I just haven't had experience with them, but have you ever met a MOTHER who said, "Oh, those poor people!" when talking about Auggie's parents. Um, no. Or when she Photoshopped Auggie out of the school picture, she said, "Which is exactly how I want you to remember your fifth-grade year at Beecher Prep. Okay, Julian? Good memories. Not ugly ones." Yeah…..
But then the story changed a bit for me. Julian was caught with those notes, which were horrible. Kids can be so harsh to each other, its really shocking actually! But the part that really got me. "Can I ask you this, then?" said Dr. Jansen. "Will you consider writing Auggie a letter of apology?" I shrugged again. "How many words does it have to be?" Julian didn't feel bad. His mom continued to defend him and act like a demon. Julian got kicked out (well there goes the $40,000 tuition down the drain…) His grandmothers story about the Holocaust was touching. And this was where I accidentally skipped a few chapters, so let me admit I was SHOCKED by the ending. Julian ACTUALLY wrote an apology. The demon-mom ACTUALLY agreed that Julian was wrong. The dad ACtUALLY was the demon one at the end of the story (although he came through). And I ACTUALLY had to Google Translate the French at the end of story, even though I'm taking French this year. And am I missing something, or was it really supposed to translate as, "Walk ever high forehead". Either way, I'm glad I read the end of this section because I was so angry at Julian for not apologizing! Sure, now he might fit into the typical bully mold of having something in his family life, bullying someone, then regretting it but still! Mushy gushy endings are good once in a while. Overall, I still think the mom is a demon and Julian is a jerk, but at least now I know he has a REALLY COOL FRENCH GRANDMA. (Or Grandmere, should I say.) ;)
Pluto:
I'll have to admit, this story was my least favorite. Christopher just didn't have that much about him that interested me, I guess. The first few chapters were just about Daisy, his day at school, and the band. The story about the hospital though. Wow. The little things can really help. Chris gave his little toy to the other boy who was in the hospital. Like I was saying earlier, young kids can be incredibly harsh, but they also are some of the kindest people, putting others before themselves. Thats one of the things Palacio does really well. She truly understands kids around Auggie, Julian and Christopher's age. Just learning all the drama of the real world but still kids inside. (The worst years, to be honest. :) ) Back to the story. I cried when Chris's friends met Auggie. "I've never seen anything that ugly in my life." said Tyler. If I met this Tyler in the street, I'd punch him in the face. Seriously? How can someone say something like that? Anyway, the rest of Chris's story I kinda wondered why we really cared? It was basically him trying to solve a math problem, worrying about the band, trying to solve a math problem, texting Auggie, trying to solve a math problem, crying with Isabel, trying to solve a math problem, Auggie helping him with a math problem, Chris going to bed. In a nutshell, a lot of math. Not exactly my idea of interesting. Anyway, this story didn't make much of an impact with me, and I don't have much to say about it. On a ending note, I'll leave you with Chris's moment of truth. "Sometimes friendships are hard." Hit it on the head, Chris, hit it on the head.
Shingaling:
Aha! A chapter of girl drama. I do have to say I wasn't looking forward to this chapter because I never really saw Charlotte as a pivotal character. More like the forgotten nice girl. But turns out, she had a lot going on This may sound mean, but I was glad one of the stories didn't focus on Auggie. In fact, Auggie was barely mentioned. Funny thing is, for Ellie, I couldn't get this one girl from my school out of my head. Her name is Ellie and she just perfectly matches the character. (Not sure I'd call that a good thing, though.) Oh and if you can actually pronounce Ximena, high five. I thought of it as Zim-in-a. (I never said it out loud though, out of fear of embarrassment.) So yeah! I was surprised that Charlotte didn't get more angry at Ellie, because if someone ditched me like that, I'd be really really mad. I did find it so truthful, the way Ximena had a "mask" that she let fall when she was away from her "popular" group. Skipping to the end of the story, I like how down to earth the ending is. The popular girls don't suddenly start hanging out with Charlotte and her friends, Ellie and Charlotte don't have a big crying reconcile meeting and become best friends again, none of the girls get their guys. It isn't exactly happily ever after, but its truthful. And I think a lot of times in books that gets lost somewhere in the fray. A book I read recently (the name will go unmentioned) ended with the girl getting the guy and her best friend who had ditched her for the popular group (much like Ellie) coming up to her crying and them having a big reunion and becoming besties again. Right. Anyway, I love how truthful Palacio is, and this story was probably my favorite just because of how fresh it was and it showed all the other drama behind what went on in Wonder. And on a side note, Charlotte's Venn Diagrams are pretty cool.
Overall, I loved this companion book! The Julian chapter showed a bit more of what happened there, after it was left a bit open after Wonder. The Christopher chapter, while not thoroughly entertaining, did explain a bit more about who the heck Christopher even was. And the Charlotte chapter showed all the girl drama that guys are oblivious to, and how friendship is complicated. In fact, I believe that's the theme of these books in general. Friendship. What it means, how it changes, and how it survives through the thick and the thin. Once again, thanks for reading all the way down!. Can't wait to read 365 Days of Wonder, another companion book. See you next time and have a great fall! (My favorite season!)
-Colleen
The Julian Chapter:
Just a little warning here: I was halfway through my review of this section when I realized I had accidentally skipped the last three chapters of the section. Oops! So a few words of advice. Try to actually finish the book before writing a review on it. XD
Palacio brings up some interesting points in her intro about Julian. "But I loved the idea of exploring Julian's character in a short book of his own---not to exonerate his actions, since his actions in Wonder are reprehensible and indefensible, but to try to understand him better."
So I dove into this chapter, expecting some excuse about his family life and in the end for Julian to regret his actions, blah blah blah. And yeah, there was a bit more to his story that I didn't expect. Julian has bad nightmares and apparently Auggie triggered these nightmares again. Again, I have to admit, Julians mom is so horrid she's unrealistic. Maybe I just haven't had experience with them, but have you ever met a MOTHER who said, "Oh, those poor people!" when talking about Auggie's parents. Um, no. Or when she Photoshopped Auggie out of the school picture, she said, "Which is exactly how I want you to remember your fifth-grade year at Beecher Prep. Okay, Julian? Good memories. Not ugly ones." Yeah…..
But then the story changed a bit for me. Julian was caught with those notes, which were horrible. Kids can be so harsh to each other, its really shocking actually! But the part that really got me. "Can I ask you this, then?" said Dr. Jansen. "Will you consider writing Auggie a letter of apology?" I shrugged again. "How many words does it have to be?" Julian didn't feel bad. His mom continued to defend him and act like a demon. Julian got kicked out (well there goes the $40,000 tuition down the drain…) His grandmothers story about the Holocaust was touching. And this was where I accidentally skipped a few chapters, so let me admit I was SHOCKED by the ending. Julian ACTUALLY wrote an apology. The demon-mom ACTUALLY agreed that Julian was wrong. The dad ACtUALLY was the demon one at the end of the story (although he came through). And I ACTUALLY had to Google Translate the French at the end of story, even though I'm taking French this year. And am I missing something, or was it really supposed to translate as, "Walk ever high forehead". Either way, I'm glad I read the end of this section because I was so angry at Julian for not apologizing! Sure, now he might fit into the typical bully mold of having something in his family life, bullying someone, then regretting it but still! Mushy gushy endings are good once in a while. Overall, I still think the mom is a demon and Julian is a jerk, but at least now I know he has a REALLY COOL FRENCH GRANDMA. (Or Grandmere, should I say.) ;)
Pluto:
I'll have to admit, this story was my least favorite. Christopher just didn't have that much about him that interested me, I guess. The first few chapters were just about Daisy, his day at school, and the band. The story about the hospital though. Wow. The little things can really help. Chris gave his little toy to the other boy who was in the hospital. Like I was saying earlier, young kids can be incredibly harsh, but they also are some of the kindest people, putting others before themselves. Thats one of the things Palacio does really well. She truly understands kids around Auggie, Julian and Christopher's age. Just learning all the drama of the real world but still kids inside. (The worst years, to be honest. :) ) Back to the story. I cried when Chris's friends met Auggie. "I've never seen anything that ugly in my life." said Tyler. If I met this Tyler in the street, I'd punch him in the face. Seriously? How can someone say something like that? Anyway, the rest of Chris's story I kinda wondered why we really cared? It was basically him trying to solve a math problem, worrying about the band, trying to solve a math problem, texting Auggie, trying to solve a math problem, crying with Isabel, trying to solve a math problem, Auggie helping him with a math problem, Chris going to bed. In a nutshell, a lot of math. Not exactly my idea of interesting. Anyway, this story didn't make much of an impact with me, and I don't have much to say about it. On a ending note, I'll leave you with Chris's moment of truth. "Sometimes friendships are hard." Hit it on the head, Chris, hit it on the head.
Shingaling:
Aha! A chapter of girl drama. I do have to say I wasn't looking forward to this chapter because I never really saw Charlotte as a pivotal character. More like the forgotten nice girl. But turns out, she had a lot going on This may sound mean, but I was glad one of the stories didn't focus on Auggie. In fact, Auggie was barely mentioned. Funny thing is, for Ellie, I couldn't get this one girl from my school out of my head. Her name is Ellie and she just perfectly matches the character. (Not sure I'd call that a good thing, though.) Oh and if you can actually pronounce Ximena, high five. I thought of it as Zim-in-a. (I never said it out loud though, out of fear of embarrassment.) So yeah! I was surprised that Charlotte didn't get more angry at Ellie, because if someone ditched me like that, I'd be really really mad. I did find it so truthful, the way Ximena had a "mask" that she let fall when she was away from her "popular" group. Skipping to the end of the story, I like how down to earth the ending is. The popular girls don't suddenly start hanging out with Charlotte and her friends, Ellie and Charlotte don't have a big crying reconcile meeting and become best friends again, none of the girls get their guys. It isn't exactly happily ever after, but its truthful. And I think a lot of times in books that gets lost somewhere in the fray. A book I read recently (the name will go unmentioned) ended with the girl getting the guy and her best friend who had ditched her for the popular group (much like Ellie) coming up to her crying and them having a big reunion and becoming besties again. Right. Anyway, I love how truthful Palacio is, and this story was probably my favorite just because of how fresh it was and it showed all the other drama behind what went on in Wonder. And on a side note, Charlotte's Venn Diagrams are pretty cool.
Overall, I loved this companion book! The Julian chapter showed a bit more of what happened there, after it was left a bit open after Wonder. The Christopher chapter, while not thoroughly entertaining, did explain a bit more about who the heck Christopher even was. And the Charlotte chapter showed all the girl drama that guys are oblivious to, and how friendship is complicated. In fact, I believe that's the theme of these books in general. Friendship. What it means, how it changes, and how it survives through the thick and the thin. Once again, thanks for reading all the way down!. Can't wait to read 365 Days of Wonder, another companion book. See you next time and have a great fall! (My favorite season!)
-Colleen