The Junkyard Wonders

Author and Illustrator: Patricia Polacco,

Publish Date: 07/2010

Publisher: Philomel Books

Subjects: Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Fiction

This week I have been introduced to a whole new part of literature and a book that I read was, The Junkyard Wonders by Patricia Polacco. I love the characteristically stylized illustrations.But more, I love the way she shows  through her story and her art, the quality of being a individual is inherent in every child, the sheer possibilities with which each of us is born, regardless of our physical or mental handicaps.

This is the story of children who are denied individuality. One of the children is dyslexic. One has Tourette’s.  Another never speaks. They’re not quite persons in the minds of the Powers That Be, so they’re shunted into a special class. It’s called The Junkyard.

Enter the wonderful classroom of Mrs. Peterson, teacher of the Junkyard kids. She believes in these kids and all the possibilities that entails: intelligence, creativity, compassion and friendship. She expects them to live up to her beliefs in them and builds their confidence so that they can. So, to everyone's surprise what is supposed to be a holding pen of shame becomes instead a place of flourishing learners and individuals.

At the end of the book is a short afterword, and I learned that the story is based on Polacco’s own childhood, that the characters are real people who grow up to … but I won’t spoil it for you. Let me just say I cried reading that afterword.