Told from the viewpoint of Laney Grafton, a ten-year-old girl who is careful to relate the events of this poignant life lesson through chapters titled, "The Beginning," "Minor Characters," "Villain," "Conflict," etc., we see a snapshot of the life of Lara Phelps. Lara is a new student in Laney's elementary school, and she is extremely overweight. Laney observes Lara with objectivity, but clearly sympathizes with her as she quickly begins to endure the predictable teasing from classmates. Set against the backdrop of preparation for a school play, Laney narrates the ugliness of her fellow students' behavior...and the surprisingly kindness with which Lara meets it.
A subplot that helps us understand Laney's compassion for Lara is the inside look at her own home life, which is lonely and painful. Perhaps this is to remind us of the adage that "Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about." We know that those especially kind to--or cruel to--those visibly different than us often have hidden, hurtful life experiences. We never get to see inside the home of the main tormentor, a boy named Joey, but we can assume he has his own wounded reasons for his behavior towards Lara.
The ending of the story closes the plot well, but leaves Laney's classmates changed forever by the short time they spent with Lara.
I read this story to my 12 year old son as part of our homeschool studies, and he was very affected by its message. In fact, he wanted me to reread it; didn't want to put it back on the shelf. I highly recommend this as school or home reading for kids anywhere from fourth grade through middle school. Its lessons are timeless and enduring. I myself was quite moved by Lara's character.
I received a copy of this book free of charge from Tyndale Publishing in exchange for a fair review.
If you are interested in learning more about this book, you can go here.
