Why Serendipity is Dyslexic: Lessons From Doll Maker

Many of you followed my NaNoWriMo journey on this very blog, reading along as I wrote The Doll Maker's Daughter at Christmas, publishing chapter by chapter in the raw as it was finished. And many of you may have been surprised at the darker parts of the story. This is a bit of a spoiler, but the reader discovers pretty quickly that Serendipity has accidentally killed her mother and two older sisters because she can't read.  I think it also becomes evident pretty quickly that Serendipity clearly has a severe form of dyslexia, and that's what led to the awful accident that claimed the lives of her family members.
So, why in the world would I write something like that in a Christmas book?
First of all, the theme is rather dark anyway--it's Gothic--dreary England, Victorian era, cursed house, etc.  So a gruesome death fit right in. However, that wasn't my primary reason for including this tragedy--it's because I wanted to bring some attention to dyslexia in a way that stood out.  Dyslexia is the number one undiagnosed learning difference/disability in the nation. One out of every five children has dyslexia. If we are going to start finding these kiddos and helping them, we've got to start talking about this issue. And as a writer, the best way for me to draw attention to it is to write about it.
Now, certainly I realize this is a very extreme case. The likelihood that anyone would accidentally kill their own family because of dyslexia is pretty ridiculous.  Nor do I want people to think that I believe people with dyslexia are dangerous or that if you have dyslexia, we should fear you. On the contrary, my own daughter has dyslexia, lots of the students I work with have dyslexia, and I have recently started teaching dyslexia--so, no, I absolutely did not want to bring negative attention to the issue; I simply wanted to make a statement that dyslexia is real, it takes patience and understanding, and it can be treated with the right program.
In the story, Serendipity is so focused on her differences that she can't see anything positive about herself until she finally meets some people who are willing to accept her differences and help her learn to read despite her dyslexia. She finds out that she actually has a lot of talents and skills that other people do not have, and that these can, in part, be attributed to her dyslexia. She finds out that many brilliant thinkers and creators in history have also had dyslexia, and that these people went on to be major contributors to science, art, politics, mankind in general.
While, at first glance, the idea that Serendipity's dyslexia causes her to make a catastrophic mistake may seem detrimental to the cause of bringing awareness to the issue, I hope that by the time the reader finishes the book he or she will see the true meaning behind my extreme interpretation. Beyond that, this is a story about overcoming obstacles, recognizing one's strengths, and realizing one's potential. (And it's also about Christmas, and who doesn't like Christmas?)
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the issue!