The Liberation of Gabriel King

Author:  K. L. Going

Genre:  Historical Fiction

Setting:  1976, Georgia

Themes:  Prejudice, Tolerance, Confronting and Resolving Fears, Friendship, Racism

Recommended:  4th Grade and Up

Accelerated Reader Book Level:  4.5

Mrs. Carter says:

It’s the summer of 1976. Former Georgia governor, Jimmy Carter, is running for president. Gas prices are high and the country is in a recession where money is tight. It’s also the year of the nation’s bicentennial, and the year Gabe has determined that he will not go to fifth grade next fall. You see, Gabriel King is afraid of almost everything — spiders, cows, centipedes, and almost anything to do with fifth grade. Everything except his best friend, Frita Wilson, that is.

Nobody can make Gabe move up to fifth grade, well, except possibly Frita. Frita has determined that while some people were “born chicken,” Gabe is not one of those people. According to Frita, all Gabe needs is a little “liberating”, and she is just the one to help free him from his fears.  Frita has a plan. She has Gabe make a list of all of his fears (all 38 of them), and they will attack those fears one by one throughout the summer. Once Gabe has faced all of his fears, he will have the courage to face fifth grade.

Things don’t go quite as planned, however. Gabe learns that Frita is not fearless as he had once thought, and Frita’s fears involve people who hate her for the color of her skin. How can Gabe ever help Frita when he is so afraid of everything himself?

The Liberation of Gabriel King by K. L. Going is a terrific read. It’s a thin little book (only 151 pages) and moves at a fast pace. Told in first person from Gabe’s point of view, the story is at times laugh out loud funny as Gabe desperately tries to overcome his own fears. When he becomes afraid for Frita, however, Gabe’s voice becomes much more serious . Will Gabe find the courage to help Frita?

Wonder

Author: R. J. Palacio

Genre:  Realistic Fiction

Setting:  Present Day New York City

Themes/Topics: Identity, Friendship, Bullying, Kindness, Overcoming disabilities, Middle School

Alerts: None — everyone in grade 4 our up should read this book!

AR BL:  4.8     AR Points:  11

Highly Recommended: Grades 4 and up.  Some of the themes and content may make Wonder a more difficult read with 3rd grade students, but it could make a great read aloud or read with a caring adult book for younger students.

Wow! I will be thinking of Wonder by R. J. Palacio for a very long time.  In fact, it may make it onto my favorite books of all time list.  August Pullman, Auggie to his family and friends, was born with severe facial deformities as a result of a very rare genetic condition.  Auggie himself tells us, "I won't describe what I look like.  Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse."

Auggie has been homeschooled all his life due to the many surgeries he has had to undergo in order to survive and because his parents feared the reactions of other children.  But, Auggie is now about to enter the fifth grade and his mom feels it is time for him to go to a traditional school.

Wonder is the story of Auggie's fifth grade year, and is told from multiple perspectives.  Each narrator has a distinct voice and his or her own burdens to bear, even though none of those burdens are as obvious as Auggie's.  It is Auggie's voice that truly makes this novel shine and that let's the reader know that, yes, indeed, we all are created in the image of God.

Gandhi once said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world."  Wonder is a novel about being that change no matter who you are or what obstacles are in your way.  It is a novel about being kind, being a friend, and loving others, and the courage it takes to live life to its fullest.  It is a novel about how one person can make a huge difference.  Read this book and be challenged to be the person, God created you to be.

Interview with R. J. Palacio about her book, Wonder, and presenting the Choose Kind Campaign: