Written by: Lynda Mullaly Hunt
First line: It's always there.
Why you should read this book: Ally is smart enough that she's managed to make it all the way to sixth grade without anyone every figuring out her big secret: Ally is illiterate. It's just easier to clown around and get into trouble than to reveal that she can't read or write because the letters always look like they're jumping around on the page, even if it means she never has any real friends, even if it means that she sometimes really hurts people she actually likes. But when Ally's new teacher starts to puzzle out the reason behind her behavior, he offers the kinds of interventions that completely change everything—school, social interactions, even her home life—and help Ally see that there's more to her than the troublemaker she's presented to the world.
Why you shouldn't read this book: Although it's won awards and gotten on a bunch of recommended lists, this strikes me as one of those books that adults think kids should read, rather than a book that a kid would want to read: Patricia Polacco tells a similar story in a much more accessible format in Thank You, Mr. Falker, but it's unlikely that a kid struggling with dyslexia would find anything but rage and terror in a novel of this length.
No comments:
Post a Comment