Reviews

Melissa by Alex Gino

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readwithkiekie's review against another edition

5.0

There is not a dry eye in this house. I am an official heart-broken yet incredibly happy, satisfied reader. George is honestly one of the best books I have ever read! These are the sort of books that should be on the school curriculum. They teach you so many life lessons and I can't wait to see what others think.

hannahhbic's review against another edition

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5.0

I bawled my eyes out. This book is very important and I want to place it in the hands of every child I meet.

katieinca's review against another edition

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4.0

Definitely an "issue" book, so I checked in w/ my 10yo, who read it first. "So, do you think if you hear the word 'transgender' now, you'll have a better sense of what that means?" Him: "I already pretty much knew that." Me: "Ooookay. Well, if you find out that you have a transgender friend, do you think this book gave you some ideas of how to be a good friend for that person?" Him: "yeah, probably."
So there you go. He's not much of a book talker. He did whip through it pretty quickly, which is a good sign - he doesn't bother to finish something if he doesn't like it, and he was glued to this. A good quick read (about 2 hours?) for grownups too, especially for parents and people who work with kids, to think about your likely reaction, and what you'd like it to be.
The dialogue didn't feel kid-realistic, which was distracting for me.
(Bonus - another excerpt from a conversation that went some good places. "If there was someone picking on one of your friends because of their identity, or because they were different, do you think you'd be able to stand up to them?" "Eh... I'd probably just tackle them.")