The Thing About Georgie by Lisa Graff

Book Jacket

As far as Georgie knows, everyone has a thing:

The thing about poodles is that Georgie Bishop hates to walk them.

The thing about Jeanie the Meanie is that she would rather write on her shoe than help Georgie with their Abraham Lincoln project.

The thing about Andy's nonna is that she kisses Georgie's cheeks and doesn't speak one word of English.

The thing about Georgie's mom is that she's having a baby--a baby who will probably be taller than Georgie very, very soon.

The thing about Georgie...well, what is the thing about Georgie?

Review

This is a great book!  It started off seeming a bit too "special lesson," specifically about dwarves.  And while I did learn a lot about dwarfism, the story quickly became about more than just Georgie's size.

Georgie is a dwarf who is scared that his unborn baby sibling will be able to do everything he cannot.  On top of that worry, his best friend has started hanging out with someone else.  And the most annoying kid in his grade has started hanging out with him.  That's a lot for a fourth grader to worry about.  But Georgie is super cool!  He makes mistakes and says mean things sometimes, but he is mature enough to apologize and work toward reconciliation.

The thing (hah) that sets this book apart, however, are the interjections by the narrator.  Every once in a while a special bolded font will tell the reader to do certain things, from holding their tongue between their fingers to measuring the heights of objects around the room.  I loved how the actions changed from being things Georgie couldn't do, to things anyone can do, to things Georgie can do that others probably can't.  It was a great addition to the story, proving that everyone has talents, everyone has struggles, and everyone has many "things" about them.

Four out of five presidents.

Release Date:  January 2007
Reading Level: Grade 3+
Where In Dunlap Public Library's Collection:  BLUESTEM