Tuesday, March 10, 2015

365 Days of Wonder: Words of Wisdom for Every Day by R.J. Palacio; Book Review



By: R.J. Palacio
Published by: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Released on: August 26th, 2014
Source: Purchased 
Rating: 5 Owlets - I LOVE IT!
Purchase from: Amazon | B&N
Add it to Goodreads

In the #1 New York Times bestselling novel Wonder, readers were introduced to memorable English teacher Mr. Browne and his love of precepts. Simply put, precepts are principles to live by, and Mr. Browne has compiled 365 of them—one for each day of the year—drawn from popular songs to children’s books to inscriptions on Egyptian tombstones to fortune cookies. His selections celebrate kindness, hopefulness, the goodness of human beings, the strength of people’s hearts, and the power of people’s wills. Interspersed with the precepts are letters and emails from characters who appeared in Wonder. Readers hear from Summer, Jack, Charlotte, Julian, and Amos.
 
There’s something for everyone here, with words of wisdom from such noteworthy people as Anne Frank, Martin Luther King Jr., Confucius, Goethe, Sappho—and over 100 readers of Wonder who sent R. J. Palacio their own precepts.


Apparently I have been living under a rock, and did not realize this book was out until last week. Last week I was traveling back to the states from Spain, and had a lay over in Madrid. While there I visited a book store at the airport, and immediately picked this book up. I love sayings, and I love books full of sayings. This book has become one of my favorites. 

This book is one that is full of inspirational and uplifting sayings from various historical figures, as well as shared letters and emails from the author. This is a book that can be easily be read in one sitting, or if you're on 9 hour plane right like I was, it can quickly be devoured then. Most importantly, this is a book written to give inspiration to and uplift it's reader each day of the year. Each quoted page has date featuring the month and the day of the month, so that readers can easily find the day's quote. 


The thing I love about this book, is that it's a book for kids, tweens, teens and adults. There is something for everyone in this book. It's one I highly recommend picking up, if you haven't already. 


*I linked to the US edition of the book, though the edition I have and read is the UK edition, which is published by Corgi. 


I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves. ~ Anna Quindlen

Good children's literature appeals not only to
the child in the adult, but to the adult in the child.
~ Anonymous ~