Wish
By Mary Eisenhart,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Lost dog and lost girl save each other in heartfelt story.
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What's the Story?
First star. Yellow railroad car. A feather. A red bird. A black horse. An eyelash. Charlie Reese makes a WISH on them all, and anything else anyone's ever told her was sure to make her wish come true. She's been getting in at least one wish (she's not saying what for) a day, ever since she was in fourth grade. Now she's in the last few weeks of fifth grade when she's sent to a small town in the Blue Ridge Mountains to live with an aunt and uncle she's never met. Her dad ("Scrappy" by name and scrappy by nature) is in jail, again, and her mom refuses to get out of bed, again. She fears the worst--her best friend back in Raleigh told her to expect squirrel-eating hillbillies. Her aunt and uncle are in fact kind and loving, and a sweet, bullied classmate seems determined to look out for her, although she keeps insisting this arrangement is only temporary, and she'll be back home in Raleigh soon. But when she spots a scruffy stray dog on her way to school, she's determined to catch him and make him her own. She's already named him Wishbone.
Is It Any Good?
Barbara O'Connor presents the heartwarming, feisty, funny tale of a girl and a dog who both need saving and find their way to each other and a loving family in North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains. Eleven-year-old narrator Charlie (cursed with the name Charlemagne from birth, and also with troubled, negligent parents) is relentless in her hope for whatever she's wishing for. She's relatable as she experiences a loving family for the first time--and also as she sabotages it by saying something mean for no reason. Fortunately, the neighbor kid seems determined to stay friends with her. Also she's found a kindred spirit:
"'I think that dog would rather be a stray,' he said.
"But I knew better. I knew what it felt like to be a stray, not having.a home where somebody wanted you. And he was a fighter. Like me. That dog and I had a lot in common. I was suddenly overwhelmed with love for that skinny dog."
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about stories like Wish that feature the bond between kids and dogs. What other ones do you know and like? Do you think having a dog in your life makes your life better?
In the story, Howard is mocked for his limp so much he says he's used to it. Do you know any kids who are bullied, physically or emotionally? How do they respond? Can you help them?
The story takes place in a small North Carolina town where pretty much all the people know each other and go to the same church. Are things like this where you live, or different? Do you think you'd like to live in a place like that?
Have you ever said something mean to someone for no reason other than it just popped out of your mouth, and it really hurt them? Did you try to make things right?
Book Details
- Author: Barbara O'Connor
- Genre: Emotions
- Topics: Brothers and Sisters , Cats, Dogs, and Mice , Friendship
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
- Publication date: August 30, 2016
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 9 - 12
- Number of pages: 240
- Available on: Paperback, Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: May 14, 2021
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