She May B. Dyslexic

Our children very often don't have an understanding of the kinds of lives people their age lived 100 or more years ago. In Caroline Starr Rose's beautiful little book, May B., we see a young girl who sounds very much like my own students today in 2013. But May's life is very, very different in many ways, and I can't help but think how special it would be for our students to read this book.

May's parents tell her she is going to have to travel 15 miles to live with another homesteader and his new wife. They need help around the homestead, and he is willing to pay May's parents to have her stay with them and help for the next few months. May knows it isn't permanent, but she also isn't ready to move away from her parents for so long with no way to be in contact with them. 15 miles across rough land in a horse and buggy is nothing to take lightly. To make matters worse, May is going to have to stop going to school when she moves in with them. School is hard enough for May, but with such a long time away from it, she knows she is never going to move out of the little kid side of the schoolhouse. It is embarrassing enough to have to sit with the little kids at her age because she can't read. After months away, she knows it will be worse and she will suffer the wrath of her teacher even more than she does now.

At the homestead, it is clear the homesteader's wife doesn't want to be there. She doesn't intend to do any chores herself, but it seems like May's very presence bothers her. When she picks up and leaves, her new husband chases after her, leaving May behind in the homestead. May assumes they will be back, but days and days pass and no one returns. Left to tend to the home herself with no new food, she has enough to survive a while, but not until her father comes for her at Christmas. Just a child, May B. does the bravest thing she could do. She survives.

May B. is my newest love. This book is told in short free verse that is very readable and easy to understand. It also makes the book incredible accessible for students who struggle with reading. Do they look at a page full of text the same way May describes? You bet they do! So having these short, powerful snippets are an amazing way to tell the story of a dyslexic girl while simultaneously not alienating the dyslexic young adults who the story would mean the most to. Pure brilliance. And while May isn't actually stated as being dyslexic, her struggles with reading are so spot on, you can't deny her obvious dyslexia. I loved this. Our students are lucky enough to live in a modern world where dyslexia is known and can receive remediation. What if they lived 150 years ago and you were just considered unintelligent if you couldn't read? This book really gives them a moment of perspective, and I really believe that is invaluable.

In addition, May is a young dyslexic girl who is SO brave she is able to take care of herself and survive through enormous winter storms all by herself. We so often now see kids who passively let everyone do things for them- teachers, parents, etc., but they never learn to handle difficult situations themselves. In fact, the Washington Post did an interesting article on these "Snow Plow" parents. So to watch May survive and figure things out herself was truly inspiring. I love this little story, and I think it would be great for any kid to read. It is simple enough for super low-skilled students, but it is also appropriate for older students as a supplement to history or a quick connection to the times. I think parents and teachers will enjoy this quick little story too. It was just so wonderful in ever possible way!

Trapped at School!

There is nothing worse than high school... except being trapped at high school with six other students, no power, no heat, and a roof that is about to collapse under 18+ feet of snow, of course. Michael Northrop's Trapped is a story about seven unfortunate teenagers caught in the craziest snowstorm the Northeast has ever seen, and you won't be able to put it down!

Scotty Weems just wants to play in his basketball game, but when the worst blizzard (Nor'easter) the east coast has seen in over half a century, his game gets canceled, along with the rest of school. Scotty and his friends Pete and Jason decide to stay to work in the shop for a while, assuming parents could come and get them with no problem. When they look out the window, they realize the weather has gotten really bad and they should get moving. They go to the gym to find one teacher and four other kids stuck at the school: the hot girl, her follower, the junior criminal, and the creepy, quiet weirdo. After waiting for a few hours with all hope of rescue slowly getting covered by feet of snow, they see headlights. The coach goes out to investigate, but never returns, leaving seven teenagers to survive the storm by themselves.

The kids fare well for a while. They have a tiny bit of heat, running water, and plenty of canned peaches and chocolate pudding from the cafeteria, although there is no electricity and no cell service. They raid lockers and the nurses office for blankets and extra clothes. When the pipes freeze, they build a small fire pit for any warmth they can get. They also figure out a way to melt snow for water and devise a latrine system since the toilets are now useless. They don't have much to do, but Jason's shop project- a go-cart- turns into a snowmobile. It becomes their only hope of escape. When the roof on the second floor collapses, they know they have to try anything to get out of the school, especially since no one knows they are there and the school will be the last priority to rescue teams. By that point, it could be too late for the seven kids who are slowly freezing to death under a crumbling roof in the middle of the worst blizzard they have ever seen.

Trapped, while not the most creative title, was a really fast, interesting read. The language was simple and the story was easy to follow, but it made you think about what it would be like to be stuck in a blizzard like that when no one knew you were there. It would be a great book for discussions like "What would you do if..." or "Who would you be"? I think it might be a great book for boys who aren't too keen on reading. The female roles in the book are almost after thoughts, but the book would still appeal to girls as well. Over all, this was a fun, fast read that would be great for any middle reader to older struggling reader. Not to mention it will make you think about moving south the next time you see a snow flake!