The La Mirada Library would like to invite teens from the community in grades 6-12 to a screening of the film WONDER (PG) on Wednesday, March 14 from 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm.
Based on the New York Times bestseller by R. J. Palacio, WONDER tells the inspiring and heartwarming story of August Pullman. Born with facial differences that, up until now, have prevented him from going to a mainstream school, Auggie becomes the most unlikely of heroes when he enters the local fifth grade. As his family, his new classmates, and the larger community all struggle to find their compassion and acceptance, Auggie’s extraordinary journey will unite them all and prove you can’t blend in when you were born to stand out.
WONDER, the children’s novel by Raquel Jaramillo, under the pen name of R. J. Palacio, was originally published in February 2012. Palacio wrote WONDER after an incident where she and her three-year-old son were waiting in line to buy ice cream. Her son noticed a girl with facial birth defects and started to cry. Fearing he would react badly, Palacio attempted to remove her son from the situation so as not to upset the girl or her family but ended up worsening the situation. Natalie Merchant’s song “Wonder” made her realize that the incident could teach society a valuable lesson. Palacio was inspired by Merchant’s lyrics and she began writing. She named the book directly after the song, and used the song’s chorus as the prologue of the first chapter. The song is featured on the movie soundtrack.
The film, released in November of 2017, recently won the Truly Moving Picture Award by the Heartland Film Festival and has been nominated for a number of other awards. Click here to read more about the movie from Common Sense Media.