Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Ally hates reading because the letters seem to move around, making it impossible to focus. But she loves to draw, and she imagines the words people speak as images in her mind. After years of frustration in school, a teacher finally takes the time to understand what’s going on—dyslexia—and helps her find ways to work through it.

I originally read this one in January 2016, when I was a children’s librarian. I found the story a bit overly-sentimental, but it’s so beautifully written that you can’t help but be drawn in.

I re-read this book after my kid read it for summer reading this year. With my kid being closer in age to Ally, the story hit me in a new way. My kid loved it, and I found myself more touched than before, seeing it through his eyes. There’s something special about watching a story you once thought was a bit sugary resonate with your own child, and it made me appreciate Ally’s journey even more.

Back to Front and Upside Down!

Back to Front and Upside Down! is a picture book about the frustration of learning to write. Stan's class is making birthday cards for the school principal, Mr. Slippers. Stan is excited to draw pictures on the card, but then the teacher says that everyone needs to write "Happy Birthday". Stan has a lot of trouble with writing; some of his letters were backwards, some were upside down, and some didn't even look like letters. Stan's classmates are writing correctly, and he's too intimidated to ask for help. Stan doesn't want to be laughed at. With some encouragement from a friend, Stan learns that it's ok to ask for help.

The illustrations in this book are brightly colored, and convey a lot of emotion even though they're not incredibly detailed. Each character is a different animal, so there is potential for talking points when reading this book aloud by asking the child what animal each character is. The font looks like handwriting, which ties the story together nicely since Stan is struggling with his writing!

This book never explicitly says it's about dyslexia, and Stan's quick improvement suggests that it is not, but it's still a good book to read to children with learning disabilities. They'll be reassured that other people have similar problems, like Stan and Mimi in the story. It will also show them that it's ok to ask for help, and it's ok if it takes them longer to learn, read, or write things. Overall, it's a great book for any child to show them that you can always ask for help, and to accept others as they are, without laughing at their struggles.

Read it for yourself!
Alexander, Claire. Back to Front and Upside Down! Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2012. Print.