GENRE 6 - RULES

Lord, Cynthia. 2006. RULES. Scholastic Press: New York.

CHARACTERS
There are many characters in the book. The main character is Catherine along with her little brother David. David has autism. Catherine also befriends a young man, Jason, who only communicates with words in a notebook and is in a wheelchair. The characters are portrayed in such a way that you are drawn into their situations.

PLOT
Catherine is trying to grow up and be independent while dealing with her brother, David. David has to be watched all of the time because he is autistic. This causes Catherine much distress. She tries to help him by creating “rules” for him to live by. She writes them down just in case he may need them some day. She has a very special relationship with her brother even though at times she is frustrated by his actions. A new neighbor moves in next door and has a daughter, Kristi, the same age as Catherine. Catherine very much wants to be good friends with Kristi and struggles with her new friendship with Jason as well. In the end Catherine stands up for herself and begins to grow up.

SETTING
The story takes place in various places: Catherine’s home, friend’s homes, the therapy center, the community center and the pond. In each of these places Catherine desperately wants her brother to be normal even though he is not.

STYLE
The author lays out the story in such a way that the book is difficult to lay down. It is very believable and anyone who has dealt with an autistic child will relate to the story immediately. Middle school students will relate to the situations in the story dealing with friends and parents. Catherine is at a time where she is trying to grow up and is in a challenging environment.

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS
Newbery Honor Book
Schneider Family Book Award
Mitten Award
Great Lakes Great Books Award
Maine Student Book Award
Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award
Kentucky Bluegrass Award
Great Stone Face Award
Buckeye Children’s Book Award
New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing
KidPost Book of the Week, Washington Post
Notable Children’s Book in the Language Arts
Book of the Weeks, Cooperative Children’s Book Center
Editors; Pick, HW Wilson Standard Catalog
ALA Notable Children’s Book
Positive Reviews
Children’s Literature
School Library Journal
Kirkus Reviews
Publisher’s Weekly
Booklist

A student’s Review
(written by a 10 year old)
I think it was very interesting because there were many adventures in the story. I was always wanting to see what came up on the next page. It was very clear as to what the characters were feeling in the story. It was very heart-warming.