The Higher Power of Lucky

               

                 Before starting The Higher Power of Lucky, I was not sure how much I was actually going to like the book considering it has been found controversial by many people. However, upon finishing this book, my mind was forever changed on the matter of controversial books.

                Lucky is a book that is considered to be controversial simply because of the presence of one word; scrotum. The book in its whole is about so much more than this one word. Unfortunately to some, this one word overshadowed the entire book.

                Personally, I thought this book was great. It touched on many topics that I think students can benefit from reading about. Lucky worries about being abandoned by her dad’s ex-wife and only real family member, Brigitte. She is also dealing with the feelings of being annoyed by her friends all while plotting to run away from Brigitte and attempts to find her higher power. These are all issues that any child, and adult for that matter, can relate to. I think that is one reason why Lucky is such a powerful read.

                I loved how each character in this book was such a definite individual and had their own characteristics and identities that were specific to them. Miles is a little bit immature, and always wants Lucky to read Are You My Mother  to him, Lincoln loves to tie knots and always drops the telephone because he is busy fidgeting to finish his latest knot creation, Brigitte misses France a lot and cries sometimes, but sticks around and cares for Lucky with a smile on her face. Lucky is in incredibly curious young girl who wants to explore the world and find as many different bug specimens as is humanly possible. Lucky also wants to feel secure in her home and not have to worry about Brigitte running away back to France someday. All of the characters have such depth and complexities about them that it is impossible to describe them fully in this blog. It’s these complexities that make the story so relatable and interesting to read. You can have a good story, but if the characters aren’t there to back it up and make it relatable, then it is a waste of a story.

                The use of symbols within this story is also very interesting to look at. So many physical things in this story represent something besides themselves. Brigitte’s Parsley grinder, in a way, represents everything about home that she misses and wants back. Brigitte’s red dress is both a symbol of the day that she arrived in Hard Pan, but for Lucky it represents maturity and being a grown up. Lincoln’s knot that he gives Lucky before she runs away can be seen as a token of his love and friendship for her. Miles’ Dr. Seuss book is a symbol of his youth and immaturity, and HMS Beagle can be looked at as a symbol of loyalty and friendship in the way that he is always at the bus stop waiting for Lucky when she gets home from school, even if school gets out early for the day.

                The setting of this story, Hard Pan, is masterfully described by the author so much so that the reader can actually picture and imagine themselves there with clarity. I know that I could imagine myself in that sandy desert far away from city life with nothing around but sand. This description of the setting really helps the reader to understand and feel the different events that happen later in the story.

                Overall, I thought this was a great story about trust, friendship, and finding out that you don’t have to share blood to be family. It is a great story with so many fantastic elements in it that it would be a shame for teachers to be fearful about teaching this book in their class simply because of the use of one single little word.