Missing May
Encyclopedia
Missing May is a children's book, the recipient of the 1993 Newbery Medal
. It was written by Cynthia Rylant
, who has written over 60 children's books such as The Islander
.
. The protagonist is Summer, an orphaned child who has been passed from one apathetic relative to another. At age six, she meets her Aunt May and Uncle Ob. The kindly old couple notices that, although Summer is not mistreated, she is virtually ignored by her caretakers and decide to take Summer home to their rickety trailer home in the hills of the Appalachian mountains
. Summer thrives under their care, feeling that she finally has a home.
Six years after Summer moves in, Aunt May dies suddenly in the garden. Summer must cope with her own grief while worrying about Uncle Ob, who is overwhelmed by the thought of living without his beloved wife. Uncle Ob decides to try contacting May's spirit, after he experiences the sensation that she has tried to communicate with him. He is assisted in this endeavor by Cletus Underwood, a classmate of Summer's, who provides information on a supposed spirit medium of some renown. Summer views his ideas with a fcker some skepticism, but is willing to try anything that might alleviate her uncle's sorrow. The three take a roadtrip to meet with the medium, only to discover that she had recently passed away. Uncle Ob is initially crushed by this news, and Summer fears that this disappointment was the last blow to his will to live. However, on the return trip, Uncle Ob suddenly snaps out of his depression, deciding to continue living on for Summer's sake.
Newbery Medal
The John Newbery Medal is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association . The award is given to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. The award has been given since 1922. ...
. It was written by Cynthia Rylant
Cynthia Rylant
Cynthia Rylant is an American author. She has written more than 100 children's books in English and Spanish. With the divorce of her parents when she was four and living without running water and electricity she became an author including works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry...
, who has written over 60 children's books such as The Islander
The Islander
The Islander is a book by the Newbery Medal winning author Cynthia Rylant published in 1998 by Dorling Kindersley.It is the story of Daniel, whose parents have died; he goes to live with his grandfather on a remote gray island off British Columbia. Together they live an extremely lonely life,...
.
Plot
The novel is set in present-day West VirginiaWest Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
. The protagonist is Summer, an orphaned child who has been passed from one apathetic relative to another. At age six, she meets her Aunt May and Uncle Ob. The kindly old couple notices that, although Summer is not mistreated, she is virtually ignored by her caretakers and decide to take Summer home to their rickety trailer home in the hills of the Appalachian mountains
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
. Summer thrives under their care, feeling that she finally has a home.
Six years after Summer moves in, Aunt May dies suddenly in the garden. Summer must cope with her own grief while worrying about Uncle Ob, who is overwhelmed by the thought of living without his beloved wife. Uncle Ob decides to try contacting May's spirit, after he experiences the sensation that she has tried to communicate with him. He is assisted in this endeavor by Cletus Underwood, a classmate of Summer's, who provides information on a supposed spirit medium of some renown. Summer views his ideas with a fcker some skepticism, but is willing to try anything that might alleviate her uncle's sorrow. The three take a roadtrip to meet with the medium, only to discover that she had recently passed away. Uncle Ob is initially crushed by this news, and Summer fears that this disappointment was the last blow to his will to live. However, on the return trip, Uncle Ob suddenly snaps out of his depression, deciding to continue living on for Summer's sake.
Characters
- Summer- A young girl who serves as the main character and narrator of the story. She was orphaned as a baby, and was passed from relative to relative, until being taken in permanently by her Aunt May and Uncle Ob, who provided her with a happy, love-filled home. Summer is distraught when May dies, but is even more worried about Uncle Ob.
- Uncle Ob- Summer's uncle and May's husband. He sinks into an extreme depression once May dies, and Summer fears that he has given up on living. He eventually becomes convinced that May's spirit is still visiting them, and seeks out a way to contact her. He is an accomplished craftsman, who has carved dozens of whirligigWhirligigA whirligig is an object that spins or whirls, or has at least one member that spins or whirls. Whirligigs are also known as pinwheels, buzzers, comic weathervanes, gee-haws, spinners, whirlygigs; whirlijig; whirlyjig; whirlybird; or plain whirly. Whirligigs are most commonly powered by the wind,...
s over the years.
- Cletus- A classmate of Summer's, he is viewed as the strangest student at her school. He meets Uncle Ob by chance shortly after May's death, and the two quickly become friends. Although Summer is not fond of him, she tolerates his presence since Ob enjoys his company. She begins to look more kindly upon him as time goes on. He claims to have had a near-death experience as a child, which gives Ob hope of being able to contact May's spirit.