Syndrome.( the wiggly letters that move on the page are an indicator). And probably a controversial diagnosis called Irlen The letters on the page wiggle and give her headaches. She has fooled teachers -year after year. The sixth grader is a whiz at math, a terrific little artist, and has a priceless imagination. “Living in a world of impossible things like in ‘Alice in wonderland’.in a world where nothing makes sense makes perfect sense to Ally. For those reasons, I am grateful for this story, and I hope it continues to teach children understanding and empathy. This book allowed my daughter's peers to understand a little bit of what she goes through to learn, and it helped my daughter understand that she isn't stupid (which I had told her time and time again).

It is only though having attentive and dedicated parents/caregivers who insist on answers, a very observant teacher, and/or a school district with the means to help students do children finally get diagnosed and taught in a way that allows them to actually learn. And getting that diagnosis and the help she needed was truly life-changing, just like it was for the main character in this book.įor those of you out there reading this book who think that it's unrealistic that a kid could make it to 6th grade without being diagnosed, you are wrong. She felt seen for the first time because she had just been diagnosed officially with dyslexia a few weeks before.

My daughter's class read Fish in a Tree when she was in 4th grade, and she was beyond excited. It's extremely hard for me to review this book objectively because it has a lot of personal meaning for me.

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt