The book
Wonder by R.J. Palacio is an amazing book that should be read by everyone, everywhere. There is a character that every reader can relate to, whether it is Summer, Jack, Via, or even Julian. The character I relate to most is Via.
Olivia Pullman, or Via, is Auggie's protective older sister.
"She can get really annoyed when people do something rude. Like, for instance, one time in the playground some older kids made some noises. I don't even know what the noises were exactly because I didn't hear them myself, but Via heard and she just started yelling at the kids. That's the way she is" (3 Palacio).
I connected with Via's character more than any other because I know what it feels like to be the protective older sister, to want to hurt every person that has hurt your brother. When my younger brother Nick was in fifth grade he was diagnosed with depression. My family had no idea until my mom got a call from the school counselor. My brother told her that sometimes he wishes he wasn't alive. This hit me like a bullet and even thinking about it now kills me. I can't believe that those words came out of my brother's mouth, he's one of the weirdest, happiest, and smartest people I know. The counselor immediately got him to sign a contract saying that he would not harm himself. Looking back on the months previous to him being diagnosed, the signs were all there. He would stay home from school all the time with stomach aches, or come home early from school. He never wanted to talk about school, or really talk to anyone at all. My brother was the August of his grade, and I couldn't do anything about it because I was starting my Freshman year of high school. All the boys picked out the tiniest weird flaws in my brother and attacked them. The number one thing he got made fun of for was putting chips in his sandwiches... Who makes fun of that? Who cares how someone eats? Nick didn't tell us much else about what the kids said, but he had his Julian and every time I see that kid I want to make him feel how my brother felt. The worst part about all of that is that he was in a Catholic school that he had been attending since Kindergarten with the same sixty kids. Luckily my brother got to meet with a psychologist once a week and he got over his depression in a couple months. I was so grateful when he got to high school, the football players in my grade took him under their wings and never let anyone give him crap. My brother was on cloud nine and the best part about it was that the guys had no idea about his past, they just cared about my brother.
