Fish in a Tree (original 2015; udgave 2017)

This was a family listen in the car and though it trends a little young for my boys, they both enjoyed it. Ally Nickerson is a 6th-grade girl with dyslexia, which she doesn't know yet. All she knows is she hates school and finds the written homework near impossible, is the object of the "cool girls'" (Shay and Jessica) derision, is frequently in the principal's office and thinks of herself as stupid. She is also dealing with the recent death of a beloved grandfather and the deployment of her own father overseas in the military. Ally's Mom is supportive, but overburdened and her older, high-school brother Travis is her biggest fan. Ally and Travis both have non-traditional intelligence. She is an amazing artist and sees "mind-movies" for much of the day-to-day situations in her life, which are insightful and creative, but have the effect of making her seemed "zoned out" and not paying attention. Travis is a fantastic mechanic and excels in his shop class and his after-school job at the garage. The story does not reveal the learning difference immediately, though the reader can guess. Instead it is shown little by little through Ally's first-person narration and reaction to events. When she gives her pregnant teacher a Sympathy card (Ally picked it for the flowers on the front) at her class shower/party, it becomes crystal clear to the reader, but surprisingly not to the adults. That is the only criticism of the book: that she could make it to 6th grade with so many school issues and not be discovered/diagnosed seemed a little far-fetched -- though sadly, probably realistic. Also the students portrayed in Ally's class definitely seem younger than 6th grade, (except for the mean girls -- they seem right on!) and the students don't change classes but stay with one teacher all day, which doesn't seem to be the norm for what is typically middle school or junior high. A 4th or 5th grade setting would've been more believable. When Ally's teacher takes her maternity leave and Mr. Daniels steps in to sub, Ally's life and world change. He is the classic "good" teacher who takes an individual interest in his students, quells the bullying, promotes fun, meaningful learning and ultimately discovers Ally's secret and helps her overcome it. In the process, she becomes friends with Albert and Keisha, 2 other misfits in the class whose own gifts become evident and valued as well. Well-written and thoughtful, this book does a good job of examining the feelings and situations surrounding dyslexia. Ally's transformation is beautiful and touching. She shares some of her grandfather's wisdom: "Be careful with eggs and words because neither can ever be fixed." The additional meaning this has for her really resonates. ( )

Now I understand why Grade 8s new to our high-school library react so positively to seeing this book on our shelf. They have great memories of reading it in elementary school and feeling like hey, maybe I’m not the only one struggling to fit in and afraid to ask for help. If students don’t see their own struggles reflected in the book, it will certainly build empathy for their peers who do. ( )

Ally has made it to sixth grade, largely hiding from everyone the fact that she can barely read. She is treated by both peers and teachers as a stupid kid, likely to be a troublemaker.
When her regular teacher leaves school for the year to have a baby, a new teacher comes in. Mr. Daniels immediately recognizes that Ally is quite bright, and that she has severe dyslexia. He makes it his mission to help her. She is also helped by something else she has never had before... two good friends. Albert, an uber-nerd, who seems to know everything and tries to model his personality after Mr. Spock on Star Trek; and Keisha, who is (I gathered) the only black student in the class. Between her new friends and her new teacher, Ally begins to see herself in a totally diffent light than ever before.
Only drawback: it's highly predictable. By a quarter of the way through, you can pretty well guess the rest of the story line. ( )

Imagine being a child looking at a piece of paper with an entire paragraph written on it, but you cannot read it because the letters are fluttering around the page like butterflies. This is how Ally saw words in books, on worksheets, even on posters pinned on the walls of her school. She was a miserable student who felt that she was dumb because she could not read and could barely write. This book is the story of a litte girl who struggled in school due to dyslexia. Unfortunately she did not know she had dyslexia, she thought she was just weird. A new school year starts and she has a new teacher who is also a student at a college trying to get his Phd in special education. Throughout the year you see changes in Ally and her peers. This book helps people to understand the difficulties that people who have dyslexia endure. It also explains how dyslexia is not a sign of ignorance but a sign of out of the box learning. This book would be wonderful for anyone child or adult that needs to understand what life is like for a dyslexic person. This book can be used for students who endure the effects of dyslexia, it can also be for English class to write a book report. This book can even help English Language Learners to fit in with their new friends and school. ( )