Hello, friends! Our book today is We’re All Wonders by R.J. Palacio, a story about feeling different and showing kindness. inspired by the characters of Palacio’s YA novel Wonder.

On the inside, Auggie feels like any other kid. He rides his bike, eats ice cream, and plays with his dog Daisy. However, Auggie doesn’t look like ordinary kids – he looks different. His mom says he’s unique, and that’s a wonder, but other people don’t always see it that way and can often hurt Auggie’s feelings. When this happens, he likes to retreat to his imagination, where he and Daisy don their space helmets and blast off to Pluto, where the local aliens don’t much care about how he looks. Still, Auggie has hope. He knows that he can’t change the way he looks… but perhaps someday, people can change the way they SEE.

This was a simple yet poignant story that did a great job of taking the themes of the original novel and distilling them down for little bookworms. The text and art are spare, which works great here – the art keeps Auggie’s physical differences abstract so as not to distract from the lesson, and becomes more elaborate and colorful as the story progresses. The simple language allows the message to be the focus, and it’s a great message: Auggie encourages others not only to look past his own physical differences, but ALL physical differences, and to have an more open and empathetic view towards the world overall. It’s a vital lesson for young readers, and it’s explored beautifully within the story. The length is great for all ages, and JJ and I really enjoyed it. It’s a wonderful tale of kindness, acceptance, and inner strength that can help teach little readers to embrace both the differences in others as well as themselves. Baby Bookworm approved!