Author: Sharon M. Draper
Amount of Pages on Paperback Copy: 295
Blurb on Back Cover:
Eleven-year-old Melody has a photographic memory. Her head is like a video camera that is always recording. Always. And there's no delete button. She's the smartest kid in her whole school- but NO ONE knows it. Most people- her teachers and doctors included -don't think she's capable of learning, and up until recently her school days consisted of listening to the same preschool-level alphabet lessons again and again and again. If only she could speak up, if only she could tell people what she thinks and knows...but she can't, because Melody can't talk. She can't walk. She can't write. Being stuck inside her head is making Melody go out of her mind- that is, until she discovers something that will allow her to speak for the first time ever. At last Melody has a voice...but not everyone around her is ready to hear it.
My Review:
WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO SAY WHEN I READ A BOOK LIKE THIS?
It.
Was.
Flawless.
Should I let Mary Poppins say it for me?
Melody is an amazing character. I felt like I should feel sorry for her- after all, she's a genius who can't tell anyone, but she's so, I don't know, normal about it. I felt more sorry for everyone around her, because they totally judged her and that was terrible. If there's a lesson in this book, that's it: DON'T JUDGE ANYONE.
It would be so easy to judge someone like Melody.
But you can't, because you can't have any idea what they know and what's happening in their head. Just because a person can't talk or walk doesn't mean they aren't human. They have thoughts, and it's our job to listen to them. This book taught me a lot.
I love how she got to do "inclusion classes" which was where she went to a classroom with all the other kids and did class with them. I think that's really cool. But her buddy, Rose, was not someone I was a fan of- that much. I liked her okay, but you have to read the book to understand her iffy behavior. Around Melody, she's a bright little buttercup, but when someone judges her for being with Melody, she gets way too embarrassed.
Almost like she's faking it.
And then there's Mrs. V, probably my favorite character for obvious reasons if you read the book. She reminds of Great-Aunt Abyssinia from Once Upon a Toad by Heather Vogel Frederick. The sense of fashion (or lack of). The hair (at least in my imagination). The ability to be maybe the kindest person you've met but also be really tall and loud.
I also like Penny, Melody's younger sister. At first, I didn't understand why she was needed in the book. She didn't seem to have a purpose, exactly, but as the book progressed everything fell in place and I was left with that AH-HA moment when you realize that yes, the author does in fact know what they are doing. So thank you, Sharon M. Draper. For that beautiful moment.
Of course, I award this book 5 stars. It deserves nothing less!
-Olivia