Contemporary Realistic Fiction - Wonder

Title: Wonder

Author: R.J. Palacio

The intended audience for the novel Wonder by R.J. Palacio is grades 5-8 and that is the age this novel would appeal to as well as adults. The novels strengths lie in the characters who exhibit self-acceptance, respect, family support, friendship, empathy and this is all bound together with humor. A weakness to consider would be that the main character does not seem to take his very serious health issues serious enough in an attempt to fit in. This would be a strong read for teaching empathy within your curriculum or to address the issue of bullying. As a bonus there is a 2017 film that could be used as a tie-in. This would be a strong addition to elementary and middle school libraries for its positive strengths and opportunities to support curriculum of grades 5-8.