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A Corner of the Universe (Scholastic Gold)…
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A Corner of the Universe (Scholastic Gold) (edition 2004)

by Ann M. Martin (Author)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
2,0181288,011 (4.05)24
This book was just not my thing. I think my life experiences with a “funny” brother-in-law have made me too sympathetic to Nana. Hattie has just been told an uncle she has never heard of is going to be staying for the summer. Her uncle Adam has been in a special home for people who are different and need special care, but Hattie doesn’t understand why everyone doesn’t just let him be normal. In general i think this is a good book with a good lesson and plenty to talk over, but my judgement is colored by my experiences making this book less than fun for me.
#BeattheBackList ( )
  LibrarianRyan | Jun 23, 2020 |
English (126)  Spanish (1)  All languages (127)
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The summer of 1960, Hattie is turning 12 and her parents drop a big surprise on her: she has an uncle, Adam, whose existence she never knew about because he's been away at a school for kids/young adults like him. Now that his school is closing, he's moving back in with her grandparents for the summer while they figure out what to do with him next. Though Adam seems odd and sometimes childlike, super happy one moment and angry and inconsolable the next, and repeating lines from "I Love Lucy", Hattie has a special relationship with him and they seem to understand each other in a lot of ways.

I enjoyed the first half of this more than the rest. Hattie portrays Adam with a lot of compassion and sort of understanding, but it's very hard to read how people treated Adam (even his own family). So much about how we think of "mental illness" has changed even since the book was written in 2002, let alone since the book was set. Adam's repetition of people's phrases and the "I Love Lucy" quotes read to me like autism, but it was hard to say for sure and no author's note delved into it. And of course, reading as an adult, some of Hattie's choices and narrative foreshadowing made me wince. Most of all, I was really annoyed that the big twist was Adam's suicide. I just... there are so many other ways that could've gone short of the poor sad, odd person killing himself. ( )
  bell7 | Nov 30, 2023 |
Book on CD performed by Judith Ivey

This is a wonderful Newbery Honor book written for middle-school-aged children. Set in about 1960, it focuses on Hattie Owens and her family. Hattie loves the small town in which she lives with her parents in the boarding house they run. It’s an insular world but Hattie knows every corner of it, and she enjoys her friends and neighbors. Her experience, however, is far different from that of her grandparents, who also live nearby, but who are quite wealthy. And then, the summer she turns twelve, an uncle she had never heard of appears. Adam has been living “at school” (really a residential institution for the mentally disabled), but the school has closed so he has come home while his parents search for other accommodations for him. Hattie relates the events of the summer of Adam in this story.

There are some serious issues dealt with in this novel, but Martin handles them deftly, honestly and with compassion. Hattie is a bright girl, curious and resourceful, polite and obedient. She is entranced with Adam who is more like a large child than an adult man. He is effusive and enthusiastic about everything. He’s also impulsive and prone to having a meltdown when under stress.

As Hattie pieces together the truth about her uncle she comes to understand a bit about what it means to grow up and the different ways in which people react to the unexpected. She learns that it is better to “lift the corners” and peek at what is hidden rather than try to forget about what is unpleasant or uncomfortable. She learns, too, that being different does not make you a lesser person.

Judith Ivey does a marvelous job of performing the audiobook. She is a gifted actress, and I particularly liked the way she interpreted Adam’s effusive speech patterns. ( )
  BookConcierge | Nov 29, 2023 |
upsetting... ( )
  Absolution13 | Oct 6, 2020 |
00009599
  lcslibrarian | Aug 13, 2020 |
00006930
  lcslibrarian | Aug 13, 2020 |
[a:Ann M. Martin|21616|Ann M. Martin|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1208461887p2/21616.jpg] writes shy adolescents better than almost anyone, I think. And while coming-of-age fiction can become a bit formulaic, when it's written well it can be wonderful, and I think Ann avoids major pitfalls in [b:A Corner of the Universe|65070|A Corner of the Universe|Ann M. Martin|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328867073s/65070.jpg|63141]. I really, really enjoyed it.

Long-time, obsessive fans of the Baby-sitters Club series will recognize familiar details here and there, but I found these more nostalgic than distracting; for the most part, reading a stand-alone novel like this, pitched to a slightly more mature audience, reminded me that Ann is quite a good writer. The setting and the characters were drawn gently and sparingly, yet consistently held their own through the story. I identified so much with Hattie's comfort in the familiarity of her surroundings and both the joy and agony of that stability being shaken. If anything, though, I was surprised just how dark the book went; and given that, I wasn't comfortable with the way the final crisis was dealt with -- there was almost a feeling of inevitability about what happens to Adam and not enough acknowledgment that this was a horrific tragedy and not the way things should ever have ended up. Just having finished it, I'm sifting through some ambivalence there. ( )
  LudieGrace | Aug 10, 2020 |
This book was just not my thing. I think my life experiences with a “funny” brother-in-law have made me too sympathetic to Nana. Hattie has just been told an uncle she has never heard of is going to be staying for the summer. Her uncle Adam has been in a special home for people who are different and need special care, but Hattie doesn’t understand why everyone doesn’t just let him be normal. In general i think this is a good book with a good lesson and plenty to talk over, but my judgement is colored by my experiences making this book less than fun for me.
#BeattheBackList ( )
  LibrarianRyan | Jun 23, 2020 |
What I liked most about this book was the curiosity, honesty and instinctive kindness of Hatty Owen, the character from whose point of view the story is told. The action of the book is set in the summer of 1960 in the American small town of Millerton. Hattie is eleven, almost twelve, and is deeply content at the prospect of spending her summer vacation at home, amongst the people and places that she has known her whole life. Although Hattie talks easily to the long-term guests at her parents' boarding house and to the people who run the local stores and the town library but she only one friend her own age. Partly this is because Hattie is shy and partly it's because she doesn't like the other girls very much.

One of the most pleasing parts of the book is the way in which Hattie slowly and almost wordlessly builds a friendship first with a girl who is part of visiting carnival and then with a girl who comes to board at Hattie's house. The slow building of trust seemed real to me.

Hattie's life is changed by the unexpected arrival of her twenty-one-year-old, mentally uncle, Adam, who Hattie had not known existed.

Adam's illness and its impact on him and those around him is depicted in a deeply empathic way but is all the more disturbing for that. As Hattie becomes aware of Adam's strange speech patterns, his manic energy, his unpredictable mood changes and the anxiety they create in those around him, she understands how isolated he is and the sense that he has of being the only alien in a world that has no home for him.

Adam's behaviour and people^s reaction to it becomes a lever which lifts the corners of Hattie's universe and compels her to reconsider what she knows about herself and her parents and grandparents.

The idea of meeting people who "lift the corners of our universe" and help us re-imagine ourselves is an interesting one but is repeated often enough to make me think, "Ok. I got it already. No need to say it again."

I am ambivalent about the structure of the novel as a long remembrance of the events of the summer, bracketed by a present-day playing of family movies about the same summer. I see that starting the novel this way builds the main character's personality and shows how deeply Hattie is embedded in her family while demonstrating the difference between the experience of the people who were there and the record that later becomes the basis of memory but I found it frustrating at the time.

The long remembrance that forms the core of the novel is full of vivid scenes and deep emotions that contrast sharply with the slightly distant reflections on either side of it, which reminded me of the black and white start and finish of "The Wizard Of Oz" movie.

The return to the present day at the end of the novel to deliver the moral of the story and explain the impact of the events seemed too neat to me and pushed the novel towards being a sermon.

I was initially put off by Judith Ivey's narration because her voice is too mature to be the voice of the eleven-year-old character but she got the rest of the characters perfectly and the initial dissonance soon went away.

I recommend this short novel to anyone who wants to spend a quiet afternoon absorbed in the life of a young girl who is exploring the nature of difference. ( )
  MikeFinnFiction | May 16, 2020 |
Hattie Owen spends one memorable summer getting to know her Uncle Adam, about whose existence she only just found out from her family. He's been in a special school for the mentally challenged since Hattie was just a baby, but the school has closed and so Adam - a 21-year-old with the mind of a child - is coming home. Adam and Hattie soon become close friends, but Hattie discovers the true meaning of Adam's particular needs one dramatic night at the traveling fair, and that night and the events that follow will change all of their lives forever.
A good story well told, in which both Adam's and Hattie's characters are believably portrayed. Recommended. ( )
  electrascaife | Dec 4, 2019 |
The vocabulary in this book was accurate for the time period, and I like how it addressed mental illness in such a real way. This was one of my favorite books of the term. ( )
  DevDye | Nov 25, 2018 |
This is a truly amazing story about a special bond between a special needs man and his niece. Adam is sent away to a special school when Hattie was very little. When she is 12, his special school closes and he is sent home to his high-society parents who try to keep him hidden away. Hattie and Adam are two peas in a pod and get along fabulously. One day while visiting, Adam meets Angel Valentine whom he immediately lusts over. Through out the story, we read about Adam and Hattie's adventures with the carnival and around town. One night, Adam sneaks out of the house to meet up with Hattie to go to the carnival where they catch some trouble when Adam becomes over stimulated due to the ferris wheel getting stuck. The police took Adam away and Hattie didnt see him for a week. Finally, one day he shows up with flowers for Angel. When Adam had found her, she was with her boyfriend which upset him. Adam ran away and went home. Hattie followed him home and had a confrontation with her Nana which caused her to run downtown. On her way home, she sees a police officer go to her Nana's house so Hattie follows to find out that Adam is missing. He is later found in the shed where he had committed suicide. The story ends with Hattie's final thoughts. ( )
  ElizabethHogeland | Jul 19, 2018 |
I personally liked this story, but I'm not sure how many 8-12 year olds will. They seem to go for a different kind of book today. They want fantasy, adventure or humor.

This book is about 11-year-old Hattie. Her parents own a boarding house and she helps entertain the boarders and make the meals. She doesn't have a lot of friends and the one friend she does have is going away for the summer. She is ready to have a boring summer, until she learns she has an uncle she never knew about. He is autistic and has been living away at a school all these years. Hattie's grandparents are the town socialites and appear to Hattie that they are embarrassed of their adult autistic son. Hattie, on the other hand, appreciates Adam's quirks and goes out of the way to make his life enjoyable. ( )
  valorrmac | May 15, 2018 |
This is one of my favorite books of all time that tells a story of Hattie Owen meeting her uncle Adam for the first time. Before Hattie met Adam, he has lived at a school since he was 12 due to the fact that he has an intellectual disability and was able to get more support. The school ends up closing down and Adam returns home to live with his mother and father or Hattie's grandmother and grandfather. Throughout the summer, Hattie spends more time with her uncle and gets to know him through the intellectual disabilities that people always use to describe him. One day, Hattie takes Adam to the carnival and when he is on the ferris wheel he gets a panic attack which leads him to be insecure and have self-doubts. It all becomes to much which leads Adam to taking his own life and sends Hattie into a sad state. I feel that this book would be good to discuss and create awareness of exceptional people and what they can do to help when they find themselves meeting someone exceptional. ( )
  Tanyka | Apr 26, 2018 |
In my opinion, this is an intriguing book. I liked this book for two main reasons: the plot and the characters. I first liked this book for the plot because it was suspenseful at parts, but kept a good pace. At the beginning of the book, it was very interesting when Hattie was first finding out that Adam was coming. She heard her parents and grandmother talking about the situation before she knew what was happening. This, for me, was when the plot thickened because it made me want to keep reading to find out what was happening to Hattie’s family. After finding out about Adam and him coming to town, I liked that the book settled down a bit and I was able to learn more about Hattie and Adam. When Hattie was meeting Leila, I enjoyed just “watching” their friendship unfold. However, the plot became suspenseful when Adam went on the Ferris wheel. The plot was what made me like this book because I wanted to keep reading, but it was paced in an organized way. At some points it was calm and at other parts it was hard to put down.
The second reason I liked this book was the characters. All the characters, especially Hattie and Adam, were very well developed. At each point of the book, I felt that I could really feel how Hattie was feeling and how Adam was going to act. For example, when Hattie was meeting Leila, I could sense her feeling of wanting a friend. The author did so well at developing the feelings of the characters through their actions and stories. As Hattie watched Leila working the circus booth, I could tell that she wished she knew the little girl. If the author did not develop the characters, I would not get this feeling through Hattie. I also think Adam was very well developed because when he saw Angel with the boyfriend, I could feel his sadness. During this part of the book, I felt a connection to Adam and my heart hurt for him. I liked that the author made it seem like we, the readers, were in the story with the characters. Throughout the book, I could feel the joy and sadness that the characters went through.
I believe the main idea of this book is acceptance. When Adam comes to town, everyone seems to be in distraught and on their toes. However, Hattie is very excited to meet Adam and befriends him right away. Throughout the story, Hattie accepts Adam as who he is and questions his family for seemingly wanting to hide Adam from the rest of the town. At the end of the story, when Adam kills himself, the family starts to become more accepting of who Adam was. Due to this, I think the author wanted readers to become aware of people’s differences to show acceptance and true feeling. Although Adam was different, Hattie still accepted him for who he was and validated his feelings and they were great friends because of that. ( )
  AmandaBuchek | Mar 7, 2018 |
In my opinion the book A Corner of the Universe by Ann M. Martin was a great story. Even though this was a chapter book with no pictures, the characters were comprehensively described. Their actions were believable, and I was able to visualize what they looked like. For example, when Adam was upset when on the Ferris Wheel and it stopped working, the text described it as "He is rocking back and forth, back and forth, and our car is pitching with him. At the same time, he's trying to wrench the bar over our heads, and he is so strong - I can see his arm muscles straining- that he might be able to do it" (pg. 133). The reader is able to visualize exactly what is going on in this scene. While reading the text I felt as if I was sitting next to Adam on the broken Ferris Wheel. This book also provides the reader with a different perspective about mental illness and disabilities that people had during the time frame of this book, which was set in the 1960's. During this time there was less of an acceptance for people who were different than others. If this book was set in the present, Adam might have not been sent off to live in a private school. His parents also would not have been hiding him from others. During the story Hattie's classmates stare, make fun, and laugh at Adam. In particular they call him a freak. This is because during the time period this story took place people with disabilities were not included in communities. There would have been a much different reaction if this happened now. which is because people who have disabilities and mental illness are included in everyday life and encouraged to participate in normal activities. The main idea of this book is acceptance. Hattie accepted her uncle and his differences. Hattie was not fazed by the differences of Adam and accepted him for who he was. This acceptance resulted in Hattie and Adam forming an unbreakable bond. ( )
  RachelToron | Feb 24, 2018 |
In my opinion this is a great book. The first reason that I liked this book was because it pushes readers to think about issues like bullying, and people with disabilities. Adam had a disability and was one of the main characters in the book, and throughout the book many people called him names or looked at him funny. In the book you were able to see how Adam felt after these thing happened and you saw how much it hurt him. As Hattie is walking Adam back to his house, after finding him walking to the carnival with his pajama bottoms on and no shirt, they pass Janet’s house. Right after they walk by her she says, “you big freak.” This made Adam very upset and as Hattie explained she, “sees that tears are sliding down Adam’s cheeks.” Hattie was also bullied sometimes by Janet and Nancy, who were two mean girls that Hattie went to school with. Another thing I liked about this book was the first person point of view. It was interesting to see the story through an eleven/twelve year old child. At the end of the book Hattie says this about what she learned from Adam, “Sometimes things work out, sometimes they don’t, but at least you’re exploring. And life is always more interesting that way.” You were able to see how she felt about everything going on in the story, especially her feelings and thoughts when she lost her Uncle Adam who was also her friend.
I believe that the big idea of this story is to be nice to everyone, and to lift the corners of the universe. Bullying can end tragically for some people, as it did in this story. Bullying was not the only reason that Adam took his own life, but I think it contributed to it. As I said in the quote above, not everything works out in the world, but it will get better. Unfortunately, this story did not end happy for Adam, but I think Hattie and many others learned a lot from this loss. She learned that she needs to talk more about her feelings with her parents, and she also wants them to talk more with her on what is going on and not keeping anymore secrets. ( )
  samgreen013 | Feb 21, 2018 |
Ann M. Martin uses experiences from her own life to tell the story of Hattie Owen and the summer she spends with her mentally disabled uncle, Adam. After Adam's institution closes down, he returns to the family who for years has denied his existence. Before the summer of Adam's appearance, Hattie enjoyed the routine life of helping out at her parents' boarding house but now her world has changed in unexpected ways. She learns to understand his childlike behaviors and they bond as friends.throughout the summer activities. Throughout the story, Hattie struggles to come to terms with the reasons why her parents and grandparents never told her about Adam. ( )
  MotherGoose10 | Nov 1, 2017 |
In this coming of age novel by the author of the beloved Baby-Sitter's Club series, 11 year old Hattie Owen recounts the summer of 1960, when she meets and befriends her 21 year old uncle Adam, who is bubbly and well-intentioned, yet not-quite-right. Adam is living with her socialite grandparents – his parents – for the summer, until they can find for him “a new school” because his “old school closed down”.

What makes this novel particularly poignant is that Hattie is aware that Adam is not an average adult, however, his diagnosis is never revealed. With his ‘condition’ shrouded in mystery, kept secret from her family, she gradually learns to discover what makes him a “corner of the universe” on her own. She finds herself getting in trouble along the way, but for the most part, it is a fascinating, enlightening experience for her as she discovers his strengths and his weaknesses. She discovers Adam has an eidetic memory for a beloved TV series, has a “circus trick” of naming the day of any given date, and can string together amusing wordplay, albeit in a not always appropriate situation. Adam also has a tendency to become rather emotional when he does not get his way, and she learns the hard way, how frightened he can become in an unpredictable situation.

In the 1960 summer, in which Martin authentically scatters with historical context in such a way one can almost see it played out to rival Mad Men on the silver screen, Hattie also embarks on a personal self-discovery. Martin’s depiction of Hattie is a refreshing change from her more formulaic characterization of her Baby-Sitters Club series. From the prim and proper girl who follows all the rules, one sees Hattie develop a meaningful friendship with a “circus girl”, and grows into rebellion as she feels she wants to do what is right by her uncle. From one who at first describes the people around her as one-dimensional people, she gradually sees another side. One feels for her as she begins to experience a sense of self-doubt and she starts to see aspects of her personality in Adam. And one can’t help cheering her on as she starts off as one who shies from confrontation, to eventually blossoming into a girl with self-confidence, standing up for what she believes in, and learning to take into consideration the feelings of her loved ones around her.

While Martin is so emotionally and historically descriptive, I feel she could have been more visually descriptive of the key characters. As I read on with little clue as to Adam's appearance, I could not help but pigeon-hole Adam into typecasts I have seen on TV, Hattie's mother into Mad Men's Betty, and Hattie just appearing awkward all over. Perhaps enough description was there, and I had missed it, but Martin could have done more.

The majority of adults reading this novel will quickly deduce which disorder Adam has, and may question if Hattie has a much milder form. However, most children will not, which makes for such a valuable learning experience, as well as an engaging read. This is the type of novel that will have many children seeking answers - from their parents, teachers, and older siblings. Or it could be the type of novel that will resonate with children who have had first-hand experience with a loved one with a mental disorder. And it can really hit home with children who are beginning to become aware that they are also experiencing the same disorder.

Do not be prejudiced by Martin’s formulaic, tween chick-lit style of her popular Baby-Sitters Club and successful spin-off series. Martin has crafted a poignant novel scattered with enough comic relief to make it suitable for the grades 5 – 7 range... however, even older adolescents through to adults may enjoy this read and find it a challenge to put this book down.

A word of warning to those looking to suggest this book to anyone under the age of 10 - this touches on rather deep, serious issues, which may be too emotionally heavy. Though girls will be most drawn to this novel as they can relate and take solace in Hattie’s puberty phase, boys could also take interest in this novel, with the intriguing elements of autism gradually revealed.

With timeless themes of abnormality, acceptance, discrimination, friendship, mental illness, prejudice, societal pressure, self-doubt, self-growth, self-discovery, threading against the authentic backdrop of 1960s United States, this book is sure to have a lasting impact for days, if not weeks and months to come. ( )
  josette_kubicki | Aug 20, 2017 |
A story about a young girl in the 60's named Hattie Owens who is meeting an uncle that nobody has ever told her about before. Her uncle has been away at a special school because he is "different." A great story for talking about how we treat people when they are "different" from the rest of us. Who is the larger problem, Hattie's uncle, or the social pressure not to be different from everyone else. Is it better to ignore differences or understand them.
  williamlong33 | Jun 11, 2017 |
(Read for Historical Novel discussion) Tells the story of Hattie, whose typical relaxing summer in her 1960's small town of Millerton is interrupted by her uncle Adam, who comes to live with her family. Adam has an unnamed mental illness that causes him to have random outbursts and act differently, though he and Hattie get along very well. This book can be used with students to observe how Adam is treated by 1960s society as a person with a mental illness. When Adam's "special school" shuts down, he is left with virtually no options. The amount of resources available for people like Adam today, and the way mental illness is perceived today, can serve as classroom discussion topics.
  ZajiCox | Jun 7, 2017 |
Hattie's life is changed forever when she learns she has a second uncle. Adam has been kept a secret her whole life. Hattie slowly learns that although she and Adam may have a lot in common- they have vast differences as well. One night Hattie tells Adam to sneak out of his room and meet her at the carnival. When Hattie and her friend take Adam on the ferris wheel things don't go as planned. The ferris wheel gets stuck and Adam starts to climb out. After being taken by the police to the hospital Adam comes home, but goes missing shortly after. He is found dead in the shed outside his parent's house.
  mercedeslillian | Mar 19, 2017 |
A Corner of the Universe was such a great read, I couldn't put the book down. The main character, Hattie is an 11 year old who finds out that she has an Uncle Adam. It turns out that Adam has a disability that has been kept a secret and isn't widely accepted in his family. Hattie finds herself relating to her uncle over summer vacation where she realized they are both misunderstood/alone in their own ways. Hattie sticks up for him the best way an 11 year old can and tries to give him a good time despite the amount of times Adam is shut down my his mother.
This book was written in first person, and gives Hattie's perspective. You can feel how she is at first confused with her family, then a bit angry and by the end feels a bit of guilt and understanding of them.
I like that the overall message of the book was clearly stated at the end on page 189, "Adam told me about lifting the corners the second time I met him, but I had no idea what he meant. Now I think I do. It's all about changing what's handed to you, about poling around a little, lifting the corners, seeing what's underneath, poking that. Sometime things work out, sometimes they don't, but at least you're exploring. And life is always more interesting that way." ( )
  AshleyBarron | Mar 6, 2017 |
This book was a great read. One thing that I really enjoyed about reading this book was the point of view of Hattie, the one telling the story. The way that Hattie sees the world is so refreshing and simple; Hattie describes the world in such a way that lets the reader escape right into the story with all of the characters. When Hattie describes Adam, it really makes the reader see him as an incredible, though interesting, human being that shapes her life and the readers' thoughts as well. Another thing that I really enjoyed about the book was how the perspective of Hattie pushes the reader to broaden their perspectives, especially about people with disabilities and fitting in. While Adam may be "strange," he is a good person and he sees the world in a unique way and doesn't try to conform to society. Hattie realizes that, too, from Adam; rather than worrying about the things that her grandparents worry about, she can just be herself with Adam and she gets more out of life from it. The overall message of this book was acceptance: acceptance of people with disabilities, and acceptance of the things that you cannot change. Rather than dwelling on the fact that Adam was no longer with Hattie, she accepts that she cannot change the past, and decides to just remember how Adam changed her life in a positive way. ( )
  LauraGraziano | Mar 6, 2017 |
Corner of the Universe was a tearjerker but it was so good that I could not put it down! One reason why I loved this book was because of the way Hattie’s character development with Adam. The two quickly become friends but she is ashamed of him when girls from her school, Nancy and Janet, call him a “freak show” for dancing alone at the Fourth of July concert (p.94). Hattie just shoots the girls a look and takes Adam back to where their family is sitting even though the song he was dancing to was not over. But then at Adam’s funeral at the end of the book, Hattie gets up in front of the crowd and stands up for Adam. She looks at Nancy and Janet and says to the rest of the town “…I want you to know that Adam was not a freak.”
Another reason I loved this book so much was because of the friendship between Hattie and Leila. They quickly became friends at the carnival and accept each other. For example, Leila's mother is Pretzel Woman which many people would think is weird but Hattie does not. Hattie tells Leila about her Uncle Adam and wants to meet him which I think surprises Hattie because others call him a freak or seem ashamed of him.
Finally, I loved the central idea of the book which to me was to not care about what others think and just be who you are. Throughout the book, Hattie struggled with Nancy and Janet making fun of her and her Uncle Adam but it did not make Hattie stop hanging out with Adam. Adam received looks and names from other people but he still danced happily in front of the crowd. ( )
  marisasantos | Mar 6, 2017 |
The book, A Corner of the Universe by Ann M. Martin, was absolutely phenomenal. It captured me from the moment that I opened the book up. One of the reasons that I loved this book so much was because of the emotional change that you could see in Hattie from the beginning up until the end. When her Uncle Adam was first introduced to us, she was embarrassed by him when two girls from her school called him a “freak”. She rushed to pull him out of the limelight and stop the teasing. At the end of the book, however, Hattie spoke at Adam’s funeral and indirectly addressed the two girls along with the rest of the town stating, ”’And I want you to know that Adam was not a freak.’…I think of Janet and Nancy and find that now I can brush them away.” (p.177-178) Through the unfiltered thoughts of Adam, she learned to accept things as they came and to be happy with who you are.
Another reason that I enjoyed this book as much as I did was because of Adam’s character portrayal. I feel as though Adam really captured the embodiment of pure emotions along with the difficulties that can come with feeling like you are on the outside. “’No one knows,’ says Adam, ‘what it is like…You are not an Alien, Hattie. I am the only true alien.’” (p. 112). The author provides us with such graphic imagery that we can see the pain that Adam feels (along with the joy). I also enjoyed how Adam’s character explains at different points what the emotional outburst mean to him personally.
Finally, I enjoyed this novel for it’s central message that the author was trying to get across. The idea that we can lift the corners of our own universe resonated with me. I think that this idea means that we should allow ourselves to experience life in its truest form (the joy and pain). It also means that people that do not serve us well don’t deserve to be a part of our universe. This book came at a very important time in my life and I couldn’t be any more grateful. ( )
  CourtneyClutts | Mar 4, 2017 |
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