Tuesday, February 10, 2015

The Julian Chapter- A Wonder Story by R.J. Palacio



The Julian Chapter is a short sequel to R.J. Palacio's book Wonder that retells the story from antihero Julian Alban's point of view, and was nothing like what I had been expecting! 

Now I must tell you that I can not say too much about the story without giving away both the plot of this sequel and that of the original book, Wonder. But what I can say is that this chapter is an example of how there are at least two sides to every story, and how it is important and worthwhile to listen to all of these sides before forming judgements about people. Julian may have been a bully, but when I read his side of the story, I was able to sympathize with him and to understand the choices he made. I think this is something that R.J. Palacio was trying to point out in Wonder as well. By offering the perspectives of Auggie's sister and classmates, it was not only easier to understand the challenges Auggie was facing, but to also understand the impact Auggie had on them, both good and bad, and how it affected the things they did and said in the story. I think as a reader, it is natural to empathize with the victim and to heavily focus on that one character's story. But as Palacio has pointed out, other character's stories also matter and play a role in the story. 

This realization has made me more aware of the characters when I am reading other books. It also has me longing for the perspective of other characters and wondering why the author does not provide them. This has made me more critical of the text, in a good way, and has me thinking deeper about what I am reading. There will be more to come about this in a later post, so stay tuned! 


1 comment:

  1. Could you pull one key passage or quote from this work that you thought was particularly helpful in changing your level of empathy for Julian?

    ReplyDelete