The message in "Ordinary Jack" will generate good discussion. It takes place in England and Jack Bagthorpe is the ordinary child in a family of gifted people. His parents and siblings are exceptionally talented. It is easier to talk about a subject when it is outside of one’s culture. The premise of the story is funny. It starts when Jack's younger sister beats him in a swimming race by 3 laps. She is thrilled. He is not. His Uncle Parker helps Jack by saying she shouldn’t be as thrilled because Jack is such a lousy swimmer anyway. Jack does not know how to react but he takes it in stride.

Uncle Parker is not really that bad. He devises a scheme to get the other family members to pay attention to Jack. The scheme is harebrained but it works! The plan is to look behind someone’s ear, his father or his sister or anyone, and he is to visualize something but not say what it is. He decides to see his favorite food. Jack is unnerving his talented brother and sisters and pretends he doesn’t remember what he sees. They continue the charade by having Jack make prophecies that actually do come true. But his uncle sets them all up.

The harebrained scheme comes to an embarrassing end but is does what it is intended to do. Jack gets the attention of his family. There are other Bagthorpe books which might be interesting to read.