Customer Reviews

A Mango-Shaped Space

5 star:		(80)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Mia has recently lost her grandfather. On the day of his funeral, she received a gift at the cemetery - an adorable "stray" kitten named Mango. No, he didn't have Mango colored fur, he exuded the color "Mango" from his little feline being. Mia, you see, has synesthesia, an unusual brain "abnormality" where she sees color in letters, in numbers, in names.

When we first meet Mia, she has kept her synesthesia hidden due to an unfortunate embarrassment in elementary school. Thankfully, she finally gets a name for what it is that makes her "different" and a new world begins to unfold for her.

Readers walk alongside Mia through stumbles with her closest friends, changes in her siblings, experimentation with what she learns about synesthesia. We are with Mia when she experiences yet another huge life loss... and survives.

What I gleaned, most of all, is how "normal" we all are, even in our "uniqueness". Wendy Mass writes cleanly and crisply and steers away from melodrama. She doesn't overwrite a word. I enjoyed reading this book possibly as much as my teen daughter, the owner of the book.

As you sit in front of your computer screen, observing the slew of reviews posted on this popular website, I urge you to stop for a minute and please read what I about to share with you. I don't even know you, but I would be thrilled if you could read and absorb the experience I had when reading, "A Mango Shaped Space" by Wendy Mass and hopefully this will encourage you to pick up this book and enter a more colorful world. Now, I am not an avid reader I must admit, but when I find a great book...I am sure to share the title with as many friends as family as possibly. For they know when I say it's a wonderful book, it is! My beloved French teacher has the beautiful gift that Mia shares with us, in "A.M.S.S." My teacher told us the first day of class, she saw our names in color as she read from the class roster. We all thought she was kidding, you know those "first day of school teacher jokes" But when I read this book, the respect I had for my French teacher grew and I was more than curious to hear about her experience of living in a world more colorful than the average person. I gave her my copy and she told me as tears rolled down her cheeks that this book portrayed the world she lives in so vividly and accurately. So come on, read this book, from the first page to the last your eyes will glide across the black words and your heart will be encompassed with colors you never knew existed. Happy reading!

Well, at first I was a little nervous about reading this book. Was it going to be like one of those books about someone who has a disease and just wants to get rid of it?

Well, no. Actually, Mia has a disease (not really a disease... but an abnormality) where sounds, numbers, and letters all have color for her. The colors are all different, and sometimes they make shapes and sometimes they're blobs.

Mia has been keeping this secret for years, ever since she was laughed at in third grade. But now, she's having trouble in math. And she needs to fix it.

This book was so emotional, and so unique, and so sad. While in the beginning I was a little scared, by the end I was crying. I didn't want it to end.

A funny, touching book about a teen-aged girl named Mia, who, because of a medical disorder, sees words and numbers in colors. How Mia learns to cope with her unusual gift (while also putting up with all the normal horrors associated with a typical teen girl's life) makes for an entertaining read for all ages. This one's got it all...cute boys, cats...not to be missed!

The book, The Mango Shaped Space, is very good. I love how everything I very imaginative and makes you think if that could really happen to someone. In this book a very special girl named Mia sees letters in color and when she hares certain things, she sees different blobs of color. Now she is recovering from her grandfather passing away and entering the eighth grade. This can be pretty tough when your best friend spills the beans on our secret. Since everyone knows how hard it is to be in middle school anyway without the added pressure of struggling grades and drama, it is really tough for Mia.
Mia has a very special cat named Mango. His name is Mango because when he meows, Mia sees puffs of mango colored smoke in the air. Mango is very special and important to Mia because when her grandfather passed away, she saw Mango on his shoulder at the funeral. Ever since that incident Mia knew that Mango had a part of grandfather in him. Even Mango's eyes look the same as her grandfather's. Mia's cat does have a lung problem though. Mango's lung has a tear in it and he takes medication but still has a cough most of the time. I would definatly recommend this book to anyone who has a big imagination.

I read A Mango-Shaped Space a couple of years ago, and I must say I loved it!

The protagonist, Mia, was so likeable and I really enjoyed how she tried to find out more about her condition (Synthesthesia). Frankly, I had never heard of Synesthesia before picking up A Mango-Shaped Space, and I found it so interesting.

I recommended this book to my book club at school. Some of us have finished the book, while some are still in the midst of completing it. However, we all have the same opinion: the book is fantastic. It's been described as "unputdownable."

I'm so glad I recommended it to my book club. This is a great read, whether you know about Synesthesia or not. I think we all share an affinity with Mia once we're reading the book (being different in some way). And who can forget Mango, her cat! And Zack, her adorable little brother!

You will love the plot and characters of A Mango-Shaped Space. It is also great for reading together in book clubs - I find that it stirs up some interesting discussions.

Mrs. Mass has taken a humorous and interesting approach to informing others about Synesthesia.

Highly recommended.

I'm always on the lookout for unique, thought-provoking books, so when a friend told me about A Mango-Shaped Space, I was immediately hooked. The book tells about a lesser known mental condition that really isn't such a bad thing after all. This book will touch the hearts of anyone, from cat-lovers to book-lovers. All the characters are well-portrayed, and the ending doesn't tell everything it could, leaving the reader thinking. It's a satisfying, informatie novel, with a voice that's as unique as its plot.

If you haven't read this book already, you HAVE TO READ IT. Its the most impacting book I think I have ever read. I couldn't put the book down. Its about a girl named Mia who is [...] years old. She has a condition where she could see numbers, and letters all in color. When you read that it might sound boring but this is the most meaning full book there is. I don't even have words for it. She soon learns that her werid condition actually has a name. Its called synesthesia(which is real in real life). Her doctor, Jerry, told her about it. She found out other people have it too. But her synesthesia ends up effecting her friends,school, and more. The part in the book that is so impacting is when her beloved cat, Mango, dies. She got Mango when her grandfather died a couple years ago. Mango was a kitten and he was sitting next to her granfathers tombestone at the funeral. Mia knew she had to get that kitten. She thought it had some of her grandfather in the cat. But at the end of the book Mango dies when Mia takes the cat in their dads hellicopter when Mango starts whezzing, but as soon as her dad is ready to take off, Mango passes away in her arms.

She forces herself to get over it but its very hard. When she does a week or few days later at her parents friends house her and her brother find kittens there with the cat their friends have. Mia knows their related to Mango. She pets the little orange one that looks just like Mango and she sees a mustard colored yawn. That night she has a dream and when she wakes up she could smell the faint smell of mustard and she knows what she has to do.

It had a happy ending and this book made me cry twice. I knew exactly what she felt like when Mango died because its happened to me before too. Thats why it made me cry. This book is now my favorite book ever. Please you have to read it.
----Samantha C.

I loved this book! As someone who believes in the infinite possibilities that extend far beyond what we alone can see and imagine, I loved reading about this young lady who possessed the ability to see in colors. An unfortunate experience with her 3rd grade teacher taught her that she had to keep her differences to herself for fear of being ridiculed and misunderstood. Her ultimate revelation of her gift took her on a journey that enabled her to finally find compassion and understanding. This book reminded me, once again, of the importance of not only listening to kids, but really hearing what they are trying to say. I decided, as I was reading it, that I want to read it to my 5th grade students to introduce them to this special gift. More importantly, I want them to understand that talking about their fears lightens the load tremendously, and to keep looking until they find someone who will take the time to listen with compassion! They can gain so much by learning that their perceived separateness is a state of mind, and not a reality once they share it with someone else!

I found this book very intereesting because it was on a topic I knew nothing about. Mia sees colors whenever she hears a noise. Also all letters and numbers have colors to her.She decides not to tell anyone when she finds out that nobody else sees colors because she thinks she is different. Then one day Mia tells her parents and she goes to a lot of doctors to figure out what the dissorder she has is. Nobody believes her in the beginning so she feels very alone for a while.
I didn't even know there was such a thing where words had colors and I thought it was really cool to learn more about how it affects her every day. This is definatly one of my favorite books and would not hesitate to read it again.