Stranger in the Mirror

This book deals with the often neglected subject of agism, though I have to say that it didn't really resolve the issue at the end. The main character just seemed to recover and respected his grandfather a little more for the experience. Everyone else didn't change their attitude, only Sam whose initial opinions you're never really clear about anyway. For all we know, he might not have had any real issue to begin with. It's beautifully illustrated, as are all of Allen Say's books, but I kind of wanted more resolution from the ending or at least a clearer statement on the wrongness of treating the elderly like inferior beings. I guess it could open the conversation on agism, but it leaves it to readers to draw a conclusion of their own show more as to the wrongness of agism in general. show less

I thought the book was interesting however I was a tad bit confused by it. It's about a little boy who doesn't want to get old like his grandfather and one morning he wakes up to find out that he looks old but still in his same little body. Everybody asks him what happens and nobody believes that it's really him. He does tricks on his skateboard to prove that it's him and wakes up the next morning back to normal. It would be a good book to read just for fun but I'm not sure a young child would understand it so easily.

Author website:
www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/authors/allensay

When young Sam wakes up looking like an elderly man, the people around him treat him very differently because of his appearance. Inside he still feels like the same skateboard-riding Sam and he comes to accept this strange transformation before waking up as himself the next morning. The mysterious story will have readers asking questions and learning about compassion for others. The paintings accurately portray the emotions of the characters.

Recommended for ages 8-12.

Sam is a normal boy that doesn't want to get old like his grandpaw did. One morning when Sam wakes and walks down stairs to the kitchen the entire family screams. He ran to the mirror and saw something he wasn't expecting, he saw himself as an old man. His doctor can't find anything wrong with him and tell his mother to just see what happens. When he goes to school children make fun of him, even his best friends. It ends up being just a dream, but this is a great book to show children that no matter how different a person looks or acts you shouldn't make fun.

Impulse grab from the library. Not sure I get it the point. I mean, yes, people do judge based on appearances, but gosh, if you have wrinkles and gray hair you're *probably* old, and *probably* frail - so ok, people are going to react to you based on those expectations. Deal.

Paintings are first rate as would be expected in Allen Say's work. The story is a good exploration of reacting to physical appearances in people.

The boy in this story gets a taste for what it's like to look like an older person, though he still interacts with his classmates (who shun him). The puzzling thing is that the boy's parents are stand-offish too. Wierd things happen in dreams, though, right?

The Allen Say illustrations are fascinating as usual. I keep going between 2 and 3 stars on this one.