Missing May was a terrific book. Rylant developed the characters so well that I felt like I could reach out and hug them. The book caught my attention right away with Summer being bounced from house to house. I have 2 sets of friends who have just adopted a child. One family adopted a 6 year old girl. The other family adopted a 7 year old boy. I thought that Summer’s thoughts about her mother showing her enough love so she would recognize it later in life was really deep. These children my friends have adopted are going through so much to adjust to family life. The boy pulls back at any physical contact and the girl flinches at any loud noise. These parents wanted desperately to share the love of a family with a child who had no love. I’m sure that Uncle Ob and Aunt May wanted to provide this same love. I was relieved when Summer described how she recognized love in an instant. I was glad that she did not absorb the emotional coldness she was treated with as a child being tossed about by relatives. I could not understand how uncles and aunts could do that to a child. I think about my own niece and nephews and know that I would gladly take all of them if need be. I don’t care what my situation in life is, family and love is first.
The love between Uncle Ob and Aunt May is something that I wish every child could witness. It reminded me of the stories I have heard about my husband’s granny and granddaddy. So many of my students have such troubled homes – one child told me his parents only speak to each other when they are yelling.
I thought the topics in the book (death, severe grief) were very mature for the intended audience. However, Rylant’s style made the topics very understandable and reachable for young readers. The reader does not become too attached to May because she died before the story began. However, the reader clearly sees how attached Uncle Ob and Summer were to May, which is what the reader needs to focus on.
The love between Uncle Ob and Aunt May is something that I wish every child could witness. It reminded me of the stories I have heard about my husband’s granny and granddaddy. So many of my students have such troubled homes – one child told me his parents only speak to each other when they are yelling.
I thought the topics in the book (death, severe grief) were very mature for the intended audience. However, Rylant’s style made the topics very understandable and reachable for young readers. The reader does not become too attached to May because she died before the story began. However, the reader clearly sees how attached Uncle Ob and Summer were to May, which is what the reader needs to focus on.
3 comments:
I agrre that it is difficult to imagine how adults could pass children around like so much leftover meatloaf. I am continually shocked at the calloused indifference at the treatment of children. I am afraid it reflects an incredibly selfish culture.
I'd read this book before, but coming back to it again I was incredibly surprised at how mature Summer was for her age, withholding grief in support of Ob, constantly worrying that he won't make it through. I know awful things happened to a lot of kids, but it was refreshing to see Summer's resilience in the face of something awful.
I'm so excited for your friends! My husband and I are hoping to adopt in the next few years - but not until our baby is sleeping through the night! I too was struck at how a child's own family could toss her from place to place without much concern for her well being. I have seen it with foster children in the past, but it is always so much more terrible when it is family. There is nothing more sacred on this planet than family.
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