Why a good book is a secret door

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Smile :)

Smile :)

Smile was surprisingly amazing. I have never truly been a fan of graphic novels, but this book was so easy to relate to. Especially growing up in the Bay Area it was nice recognizing all the areas she was talking about. Besides just having the story take place in that area the story itself was what many children went through when they needed braces. The impressions they had to take that almost made you throw up every time was my favorite part because I am pretty sure that happened to everyone that had to get them done. I also enjoyed the part where she had to get her braces tightened and could not eat anything real hard for a few days because it was so painful. This part brought me back to when I always had to get that done and how I was living off soup and pudding for about three days. Another part for me that was so easily relatable was the close mother daughter relationship they had. My mom and I are also extremely close and I could imagine my mom yelling at the doctor if he were to put me in that much pain as well. I would recommend this book to any young girl or boy who was going through the braces and transitioning into different schools. I would have this book in my classroom library because it was such an easy read. I would suggest a student who may not be such a fan of reading to give this a try because there are pictures that go all throughout the book. Having a student that may not enjoy reading start this book could be the one thing that makes them fall back in love with reading. As an assignment for this book since many graphic novels are not in AR, I would have this student write his or hers own graphic novel with pictures and everything and place it in my classroom library for other students to read. This activity would let the student be as creative as they want while still practicing reading and writing, plus a little art. I highly recommend every teacher to have this book in his or her classroom.

One Reply to “Smile :)”

  1. Hi Rachel! I also read this book! I totally agree with you in that I was not really into graphic novels in the beginning before reading this book. I love the concept of this book because it was so relatable and would definitely have my students read it as well. Hope you had a great weekend! :)

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