Rules
by Cynthia Lord
Hi! Have you ever felt embarrassed by your sibling? Well, Catherine is embarrassed by her little brother every day! Her little brother, David, can’t help it, though.
David has something called autism. One symptom of autism is that it affects your social skills and communication. Catherine has come up with rules for David, like boys can take their shirts off but not their pants. David just has trouble understanding things. One day, Catherine meets a boy named Jason. He can’t talk and is in a wheelchair. She wants to asks Jason out to a dance, but she’s too embarrassed to be seen with a boy in a wheelchair, so she doesn’t. When Jason finds out about the dance and wants to go with her, she says no and hurts Jason’s feelings. This book is about Catherine trying to help her brother fit in more easily and also about her trying to establish a relationship with Jason.
I didn’t like how Catherine embarrassed Jason by not wanting to go to the dance with him. I’m glad that it was in the book, but it made me feel uncomfortable when I read about it. I think it’s good to read things like this to help us be more aware about how we’re treating other people.
I loved how Catherine grew throughout the story. Through her relationships with people who have struggles, she learns more about herself and about how actions impact those around you.
This book is a lot like the book Wonder. Rules is about a girl whose little brother has a hard time fitting in, just like Auggie in Wonder has a hard time fitting in.
Will Catherine be able to sort out everything in her life? Or will she always be controlled by what other people think? As I always say, read the book to find out!
A few helpful things I like to say about the books I read:
“Run and Get Mom” (how I describe the scariness factor – zero being not scary at all and five being majorly scary): 0
“Yucky-Lovey Stuff” (how I describe the romance factor – zero having no yucky-lovey parts in it and five having major yucky-lovey parts): 4
I give this book 5 wands.
I absolutely loved this book! It meant a lot to me to get a glimpse of life through the eyes of someone who has a family member with autism. I would really recommend that you read this book.
