Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan

This book tells the story of Willow, a 12 year old genius with a passion for gardening. The themes explored include, what it means to be different, what constitutes family, personal growth, and how life can change in an instant. 

I would have preferred the story without quite so much giftedness! It made Willow less believable as a character and suggested that people were helping her because they had something to gain, rather than simply showing compassion. 

Other characters include:

Dell Duke - a lacklustre counsellor. Willow is asked to meet with Dell after she gets 100% in a standardised test and the principal assumes she cheated. 

Mai & Quang-ha Nguyen - teenage clients of Dell Duke. 

Pattie Nguyen - mother of Mai and Quang-ha. Pattie is a smart single mum from Vietnam, who runs a nail salon and lives in a garage.

Jairo Hernandez - a taxi driver that Willow befriends.

** SPOILERS **

Some questions for discussion:

Was Pattie right to save her money and live in a garage?

How credible is Willow's intelligence? Would it really be possible to pick up Vietnamese in 12 months? Would she really want to pick up a book on astrophysics? 

In what ways was Dell Duke a good social worker?

What effect did meeting Willow have on Mai, Pattie, Jairo, Dell, Quang-ha? In what way did they change?

Other than being smart, how else would you describe Willow's personality? Use evidence from the book to support this.