Review--"Out of My Mind."

As promised, here is the first book in my review series--Sharon Draper's Out of My Mind. Here's the jacket info:

Eleven-year-old Melody has a photographic memory. Her head is like a video camera that is always recording. Always. And there's no delete button. She's the smartest kid in her whole school—but no one knows it. Most people—her teachers and doctors included—don't think she's capable of learning, and up until recently her school days consisted of listening to the same preschool-level alphabet lessons again and again and again. If only she could speak up, if only she could tell people what she thinks and knows . . . but she can't, because Melody can't talk. She can't walk. She can't write. Being stuck inside her head is making Melody go out of her mind—that is, until she discovers something that will allow her to speak for the first time ever. At last Melody has a voice . . . but not everyone around her is ready to hear it.

All I can say is...wow.

This book blew me away. The greatest thing about YA contemporary are the characters and how real they are, and Melody is no exception. She amazes me, and makes me feel just the slightest bit guilty for all the things I have in my life that she doesn't. Even pressed between pices of paper and little black marks, this girl impresses me with her dedication and endurance. I could never have done what she did.

Draper fantastically weaves a story together built of little more than the thoughts of a crippled girl, and makes you laugh and cry simultaneously with her voice. An amazing book from an amazing author.

Rating: 5 stars (out of 5)

If you read this post, give me a book to review. Or several. I'm almost out of good books to read.