Think back on some of your favorite books and describe one that has influenced you in some way. When did you read the book, what was it about, and how did it impact your life?

Out Of My Mind

Explanation:

One of my favorite books is Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper. I can't date back to when I read it but I'd say it was maybe two years ago? Not sure. I'd reread it every day.

*Warning: Spoilers!*

This story is told through 11-year-old Melody. She has cerebral palsy, and this resulted in her inability to speak or walk. She does have an extraordinary photographic memory. She's very intelligent and can understand everything very well. However, this is something that many people around Melody cannot seem to grasp. They make it seem as if she has the inability to think or as if she's incapable of learning. She becomes frustrated with this because it feels as if people who don't even know her well just assume she doesn't understand anything, this is including her peers and unfortunately adults as well. She navigates through the rest of the story and goes through ups and downs.

I've become better at recognizing when an author has good writing and characters or not, so if you read reviews of this book, many of the negative ones are just about the writing. I can understand that. At the time, I began reading this book and automatically got hooked because of the concept and being able to understand how Melody felt. It was the first time I really thought about people with disabilities and imagined how frustrating it must be to be constantly underestimated and misunderstood. When Melody felt angry, I was angry. When she felt happy, I felt happy. When she was disappointed, I was disappointed. If there's something that I did see 1-3 star reviews say is that it really does shine a light on how people that are disabled feel. It gives them a voice. Even if the writing isn't too complex or unique to some people and they found the characters one-dimensional, I think that everyone needs to read this book at least once. Especially those who have mindsets similar to the antagonists in the story (I'm looking at you, Claire). Overall, the story was eye-opening to me, it gave me a bigger heart, and encourages me to be emotionally aware of all people.