The Invisible Boy
Picture Book Read Aloud
book summary
The Invisible Boy is a story about Brian, who feels isolated and lonely and seems to go unnoticed by everyone in his class. He is a loner who loves to draw, has a great imagination, and create stories. Brian creates comics about greedy pirates, fighting space aliens, and superheroes who have the power to make friends everywhere with anyone. Brian shows his kindness and sense of humor through his drawings. In one of his drawings, Brian creates a dragon living on top of a tall apartment building. The people living in the apartment pass marshmallows to the dragon, and he will roast the marshmallow for them.
Brian feels ignored at lunchtime by his classmates and ignored when the kids choose teams to play kickball at recess. Even Brian’s teacher doesn’t seem to notice him because she is paying attention to the louder kids. So Brian just hangs out, waiting quietly and hopes that someone will notice him.
One day, a new student, Justin, joins the class. Brian is the first one to welcome Justin with a simple smile. At lunch, the other kids in the class were making fun of Justin for eating Bulgogi, a Korean barbecued beef. Brian is the only one that doesn’t laugh at Justin. “And the kids laugh. All of them that is, except Brian. He sits there wondering which is worse—being laughed at or feeling invisible.” After lunch, Brian writes Justin a special welcoming letter that says he thought the Bulgogi looked good. When it was time to choose partners in class, Brian asks Justin to be his partner for the project.
The note starts a friendship that will lead to Brian becoming more visible. After the friendship between Brian and Justin is formed, the other students begin to notice him, and he makes even more friends. The illustrations of the text mirror the transformation in Brian. At the beginning of the book, Brian is gray and colorless. As the story progresses, his illustrations start to take on more and more color.
This book is a bit different than other books that focus on bullying. For the most part, the other kids in the class are not mean to Brian. They just don’t seem to notice him or include him on anything. This book is a gentle reminder for kids to be on the lookout for those who are feeling left out and how a simple act of kindness and an offer of friendship can not only brighten someone’s day but possibly change the course of their life.
suggested teaching point
The Invisible Boy can be used to model for students how to analyze characters.
On page 6, J.T. glances at Brian, but then quickly looks away. How do you think that made Brian feel? If J.T. wanted to be a better friend, what could he have done instead of turning away?
On page 9, Madison and her friends are talking about all of the fun they had over the weekend. Everyone is talking except Brian. What could Madison and her friends have done differently?
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