Review: Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt
a deeply honest portrayal of autism
Introduction
The story of Good Different deals with Selah Godwin, a child with autism who tries her very best to fit in with the other kids at school and to live as best as she can without hurting others. She has an obsession with dragons, and lives by certain rules that prevent her from behaving badly. Unfortunately for her, however, sometimes rules change. And this is where the crux of the matter truly lies for her.
Preface:
Now, I would like to preface this review by stating two things clearly:
First: I am not sure whether I have autism or not. I do have a very strong suspicion I might have ADHD, though.
Second: Despite not being diagnosed with autism, I felt immensely seen by this novel. I am not sure whether that’s a sign or just a universal thing.
Just like Selah, I myself have never felt like I fit in anywhere. I, too, have felt that the whole world functions on a different rhythmic pattern than my own, and I could step onto a wrong note at any point.
Plot
The book isn’t focused too much on plot details as it is on characters and their development, which I feel is quite rare in a middle grade novel. This book feels quite interestingly like a literary fiction novel. Maybe there is such a thing as middle grade literary fiction and I am a dumbass.
Aside from certain plot elements like the inciting incident, there’s not a lot of plot in this novel. The book is told in verse (as I am told by StoryGraph, apparently, because I didn't feel like I was listening to poetry at all), so each chapter is a short burst of small vignettes into Selah’s life and mind. It isn’t even concerned with continuity, which I feel is quite refreshing. The book jumps back and forth between the past and the present but it never feels overwhelming. You always know where you are in the story at all times.
Characters
This. This is where the book shines, in my opinion. The book works so well as a character study and handles the characters with such care.
Selah Godwin: Not a goody-two-shoes who’s never at fault. She has faults and prejudices about the world and the people around her, and that’s what makes her all the more relatable and likable. She is a fully formed, three-dimensional character with flaws, needs, and wants. By the end of the story, she is transformed into something completely different altogether.
Grandpa: Selah’s closest relative in the story, he also grows throughout the course of the novel. He learns things he never thought about through Selah and then actively tries to change for the better.
Selah’s Mother: Perhaps the most heartbreaking character. She, just like Selah, is trying to find her place in the world. Without spoiling anything, she learns what it means to do just that. The most poignant aspect of her character arises from her insecurities as a mother. In a middle grade novel, the author bravely gives a perspective on parenthood rarely explored in children’s literature.
Other minor characters—like Selah’s best friend (whose name I keep forgetting) and the girl Selah has an issue with—also receive satisfying arcs by the end of the story.
Writing
Meg Eden Kuyatt writes with a simple yet effective tone. Again, as I’ve said before, I did not know the book was in verse. Maybe it’s because I am not familiar with this type of verse, or some other factor, but in order for me to recognize something as poetry or as verse—and not just random line breaks—it needs a clear rhythm and pattern, which I did not catch in this novel.
However, the writing does an amazing job of hitting you where it hurts the most. Some of the most relatable and profound lines in a middle grade novel I have ever read include:
“You can feel alone, even if you have friends.”
“It’s easy to be reasonable when everything’s fine. When everyone thinks like you.”
The second line hit me really hard when I read it at a time when things were not very fine for me personally. It spoke to me on a level I cannot explain. It felt as if someone had grabbed the words from my heart, arranged them into a pretty sentence structure, and thrown it all on a wall for me to read.
Themes
Autism & Universal Isolation
We cannot talk about this book without mentioning autism. Yet, I would argue that Good Different isn’t specifically just about autism—it’s about something more.
As stated, I am not sure whether I have autism, so I cannot speak to the accuracy of its representation. I do know, however, that the author herself has autism and based this book on her own experiences. From what I can tell, she has sincerely presented an honest portrayal.
Universal Resonance:
Even if you have never had autism, if you have ever felt alone, isolated, or like a jigsaw piece with too many jagged edges that does not fit, you will relate deeply to this book.
Critique of the School System
If there’s any bashing of formal education in media, I celebrate it. I have my own grievances with the education system (an essay for another time), but this novel does an excellent job exposing how schools often fail kids:
“The world was not made with us in mind.”
It absolutely infuriates me to know that there are kids out there who are obviously struggling yet the authorities who are supposed to look out for them are saving their own asse-
Okay, breaaath deeply. Not the time. Not the time for this rant here.
Anyways, I was saying that this book does an excellent job at exposing the ridiculous ways in which the school system absolutely fails kids. That is all. If i say anymore i might explode from anger, so i will stop it here.
Conclusion
READ THIS BOOK. That's my conclusion for you all. Just read it.
Overall Rating: 5/5