by Tony Abbott
Little, Brown, 2006
GENRE: Contemporary
Realistic Fiction, School Stories, Coming of Age
HONORS: 2006
Golden Kite Award Winner
REVIEW: The
teacher of Tom’s seventh grade class at St. Catherine’s announces that a new
student will be joining their class, but that Jessica Feeney is no ordinary
girl. She was badly burned in a fire, and will attend the school while she is
being treated at a local hospital. Needless to say, life will never be the same
for Tom and his peers but despite the fear and uncertainty her appearance
invokes in his classmates, Tom slowly develops a friendship with the new girl
that will change his life forever.
OPINION: While I
can’t say I entirely enjoyed this book, I appreciate the purpose it serves. It
rather masterfully tackles some powerful issues like body image and the
acceptance of others without prejudice in a way that is easily digestible by readers
of all ages.
IDEAS: This book
is meant to make readers think, so ideally it would be great to have a
discussion about the issues, themes and ideas presented in the book such as
body image, tolerance and acceptance, but that may be better suited for a
classroom. In a library, I might include this book in a display about
acceptance or tolerance, or a more general display about of tween realistic
fiction.
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