Review of Wonder

Wonder is an amazing book that was written by R.J. Palacio in 2012, and was recently turned into a movie. My mom, two of her best friends, and I went to see the movie on November 17th, the day it premiered. We were all thoroughly moved and spent most of the length of the movie in tears.

For those of you who have not read the book, Wonder is about a boy named August (Auggie) Pullman, who suffers from severe craniofacial deformities based on Treacher Collins Syndrome. In other words, his face does not look like the average person’s face. His condition makes it difficult for him to hear without a hearing aid and often causes people to stare at him. He has been homeschooled by his mom for his entire life, but he decides to try attending a normal school when he enters fifth grade. This is his first experience being around lots of kids his age. The book follows his experience at his new school and how he develops friendships throughout the year. It also switches perspectives to show the thoughts of some of his peers, his sister, and some of his sister’s friends. While some of the kids do bully him, the majority of his classmates accepts him for who he is. The message of acceptance and inclusion has stayed with me since I first read the book in middle school.

I have been waiting for the movie adaptation of the book for a very long time. Luckily, the movie exceeded my expectations. Auggie is played by Jacob Tremblay, while Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson play his parents. I thought all of the casting in the movie was fantastic. Daveed Diggs from Hamilton plays Mr. Brown, Auggie’s English teacher who inspires his students with monthly quotes. The movie stuck to the book for the most part, only changing a couple of things. They did change some of the events at the end of the movie, but it did not significantly alter the outcome. I liked how the movie also changed perspectives to show other characters as well. If you see the movie, which I highly recommend, definitely prepare yourself by bringing lots of tissues.

I think the book and the movie are both extremely meaningful and important. The book has been added to required reading lists around the country, which is good because it teaches such a valuable lesson that more students need to learn: when given the choice between being right and being kind, choose to be kind.