Marrying Malcolm Murgatroyd

Author: Mame Farrell
Pages: 122
Rating: G

Summary: Hannah dreads her school autobiographical writing project; she doesn't want to admit that the biggest nerd in sixth grade, Malcolm Murgatroyd, is a long-time family friend and best friend to her brother, who has muscular dystrophy. She hates being teased by her family about marrying Malcolm, until he reveals his true personality when her brother succumbs to his disease.

My Thoughts: I bought this book at a scholastic book fair when I was in about the 5th grade. At the time, I was obsessed with all things love story and romantic, and the fact that this book had the word "marrying" in the title was a good enough reason for me to snatch it up. I also thought that the girl on the cover looked so much older and mature, so I was sure this would be a very romantic story. I was dead wrong, but not disappointed.

Hannah is part of the popular crowd at school, and in order to keep it that way, she keeps her family's relationship with Malcolm a very close secret. Their families have been friends since before Hannah was born, and Malcolm, although physically awkward and painfully "uncool" is very emotionally mature, and knows exactly how to handle difficult situations like Hannah's brother Ian being diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. Because of their family relationship, Hannah feels like it is her duty to stand up for Malcolm when he gets bullied at school, usually by her group of friends. However, this has the potential to put her in the line of fire as well, which she is afraid to do.

I absolutely love this book. It's short and simple, I would say that 4th grade and up could read it, and it has an amazing message about how it doesn't really matter what someone looks like on the outside. It's what they are on the inside that counts, and standing up for someone is always the right thing to do, even when we are afraid of being the target ourselves. If you ever come across this book, it's definitely worth the short time it will take you to read it. It has such a sweet ending and an amazing message.