The Higher Power of Lucky #2

I finally finished "The Higher Power of Lucky." I must say that I felt that this book was a very short read, although this would not be true for elementary age children. Originally it took me a while to get into the book and I found myself not engaged, but once I had finished the first half of the book the pace picked up. The climax of the book occurred after about 2/3's of the book passed which was when Lucky ran away because she felt like she did not belong.

As I was reading the book I still found myself wondering if an elementary aged child would be able to understand the book. Through the first half of the book I was confused and had to reread the first couple of chapters. After the first half, the book became easier to understand because questions were answered. I found myself finally getting into the characters and I was no longer only reading the text, but I was comprehending the text. This is an important distinction because just because a child can read does not mean that they are comprehending what they are reading. An important component of this book to mention is the illustrations that occur every 5-10 pages. I found myself drawn to these illustrations and they helped me understand the book better because each illustration was placed in a specific place on the page which would help me visualize what I was reading. I think that sometimes teachers think that novels should not have illustrations, but I disagree. Illustrations are a great way to help children visualize what they are reading.

Now that I have finished reading the book I would say that this book was well deserving of the 2007 Newbery Medal. I would definitely have to say that this text should be geared towards middle school aged children or advanced fifth grade students because of both the language used and the content discussed.