Rules by Cynthia Lordrating: 4 of 5 stars
Twelve-year old Catherine is like most girls her age. She wants to make friends and she cares about what others think of her. Mostly, she wants to be "normal".
But Catherine feels like she has it harder than others because her younger brother has autism and it embarrasses her. So, she has a sketchbook where she writes down all the rules that she thinks he should know. For instance, "It's okay to hug Mom but not the clerk at the video store" and "No toys in the fish tank" (hence, the cover). In the course of the book, Catherine makes friends with a paraplegic which sets her on a road to discovering what "normal" really means.
I found this Newbery Honor book to be incredibly refreshing and a joy to read. It is a great book for anyone who wants to understand more about living with and befriending those with disabilities. I think it would be a great book to read aloud (it's funny and heartbreaking) and discuss with kids. Appropriate from about 4th grade on up.
Also reviewed by:
7 comments:
I really like the sound of this book. and the book cover is so cute :)
Nice storyline :)
sounds quite interesting!
i think you'd like Maria de los Santos. her first novel is on my list to read next. :)
You do such great reviews! I have never read Rules. I'll put it on my TBR list. I have also had A Christmas Carol on my shelf for years, and have never gotten around to reading it! Thanks for the reminder!
Thank you for reminding me of this book! I'd added it to my wishlist after Natasha's review, but I had sort of forgotten about it in the meantime. It sounds wonderful and I really need to get to it.
WOW! That does sound really good. Normal is so hard to define, and when you are in your developing stages it is easy to feel like the outsider. this is an excellent review, I would love to read it!
I love Newbery Honor books! Once I eventually read all the Newbery award winners, I'd like to start on the honors.
Post a Comment