You know you've got a breath-taking book in your hands when you feel shocked, confused, happy and numb all at the same time!

Wonder is the tale of August Pullman, or Auggie, a ten year old boy who acts like, well, a ten year old boy. If it was up to him, he would live a completely normal life. He already does normal stuff - playing on his Xbox, eating ice creams, and kicking a ball around, just like any other kid.

Auggie has a sweet, loving and understanding nature. Which is why he is able to understand when children run away screaming upon looking at Auggie's face: deformed, smushed up, with tiny eyes and a puffy mouth, and this was after surgery.

There is nothing wrong with Auggie's brain. He is smart, quick witted and has a brilliant sense of humour. Yet the running children wouldn't know this, because they never stop to talk to him. It is prejudice, but in its pure, unadulterated form, the kind which only young children are capable of.

Still...being home-schooled he doesn't have to spend that much time outside, until, of course, his parents decide to send him to school.

One sentence which stays with you throughout the book is the conversation Auggie eavesdrops on, his parents talking late at night. "So sending him off to middle-school like a lamb to slaughter…," Dad answered angrily. Auggie has no idea what it means - but he will find out, slowly and painfully.

This is an incredible book. The story-telling is marvellous, the styling superb and the honest, raw truth is: heart-breaking.

It offers up a harsh critique of our society and, finally, subtle praise for those people who dare to break out of the mould and stand up for what they believe in.

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