Mockingbird

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Mockingbird

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Overview

Winner of the 2010 National Book Award for Young People's Literature

Caitlin has Asperger's. The world according to her is black and white; anything in between is confusing. Before, when things got confusing, Caitlin went to her older brother, Devon, for help. But Devon has died, and Caitlin's dad is so distraught that he is just not helpful. Caitlin wants everything to go back to the way things were, but she doesn't know how to do that. Then she comes across the word closure— and she realizes this is what she needs. And in her search for it, Caitlin discovers that the world may not be black and white after all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780142417751
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	02/03/2011
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	16,557
Product dimensions:	5.05(w) x 7.75(h) x 0.70(d)
Lexile:	630L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 12 Years

About the Author

Kathryn Erskine spent many years as a lawyer before realizing that she’d rather write things that people might actually enjoy reading. She grew up mostly overseas and attended eight different schools, her favorite being the Hogwarts-type castle in Scotland. The faculty, of course, did not consist of wizards, although . . . how did the headmistress know that it was “the wee redhead” who led the campaign to free the mice from the biology lab? Erskine draws on her childhood—and her second childhood through her children—for her stories. She still loves to travel but nowadays most trips tend to be local, such as basketball and tennis courts, occasional emergency room visits, and the natural food store for very healthy organic chocolate with “life saving” flavonoids.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

Praise for MOCKINGBIRD

"[A] fine addition to the recent group of books with autistic narrators." --Booklist "A strong and complex character study." --Horn Book "This heartbreaking story is delivered in the straightforward, often funny voice of a fifth-grade girl with Asperger's Syndrome." --Kirkus, starred review "This is...a valuable book." --School Library Journal "Erskine works in powerful imagery throughout." --Publishers Weekly, starred review

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Editorial Reviews

Ten-year-old Caitlin Smith has Asperger's syndrome, which is why she is processing a horrific event differently than everyone else in her small Virginia town. As the result of a school shooting, her beloved brother, Devon, and two others are dead. Caitlin's mother is also dead, lost to cancer when Caitlin was just three. She addresses these losses matter-of-factly; her lack of tact is especially hard on her father, a kind man who is falling apart. Over the course of the story, Caitlin, who like many with Asperger's has incredible brainpower but few social skills, must learn empathy. She narrates—a risky choice that mostly works. Her Amelia Bedelia-like misunderstandings of figurative language provide much needed moments of levity, and her extreme conscientiousness is endearing. Erskine (Quaking) works in powerful imagery throughout—Devon's unfinished Eagle Scout project was a wooden chest, and for Caitlin, it's entwined with the irreparable bullet wound in Devon's chest. Although an author's note links the novel with the 2007 tragedy at Virginia Tech, this novel is not about violence as much as about the ways in which a wounded community heals. Ages 10-up. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

This heartbreaking story is delivered in the straightforward, often funny voice of a fifth-grade girl with Asperger's syndrome, who is frustrated by her inability to put herself in someone else's shoes. Caitlin's counselor, Mrs. Brook, tries to teach her how to empathize, but Caitlin is used to depending on her big brother Devon for guidance on such matters. Tragically, Devon has been killed in a school shooting. Caitlin, her dad and her schoolmates try to cope, and it is the deep grief they all share that ultimately helps Caitlin get to empathy. As readers celebrate this milestone with Caitlin, they realize that they too have been developing empathy by walking a while in her shoes, experiencing the distinctive way that she sees and interacts with the world. Erskine draws directly and indirectly on To Kill a Mockingbird and riffs on its central theme: The destruction of an innocent is perhaps both the deepest kind of psychosocial wound a community can face and its greatest opportunity for psychological and spiritual growth. (Fiction. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews

Praise for MOCKINGBIRD
"[A] fine addition to the recent group of books with autistic narrators." —Booklist"A strong and complex character study." —Horn Book"This heartbreaking story is delivered in the straightforward, often funny voice of a fifth-grade girl with Asperger's Syndrome." —Kirkus, starred review"This is...a valuable book." —School Library Journal"Erskine works in powerful imagery throughout." —Publishers Weekly, starred review"Fascinating characters." —Los Angeles Times

From the Publisher

Fascinating characters.

Los Angeles Times

A strong and complex character study.

Horn Book

[A] fine addition to the recent group of books with autistic narrators.

Booklist

Virginia author Kathryn Erskine takes the reader into the world of Caitlin, a girl with Asperger's syndrome, as she struggles to understand the death of her older brother. Caitlin finds it much easier to "read" dictionaries than people; and in the course of regular meetings with her school counselor, she tries to learn social skills that will enable her to connect with others. She also wants to help her grieving father and the community to achieve "Closure" in the aftermath of the school shooting that took her brother's life. In Erskine's capable hands, Caitlin emerges as a wholly believable, admirable hero as she forges a unique path to friendship and healing. A lovely, important book. Reviewer: Mary Quattlebaum

Children's Literature - Mary Quattlebaum

Ten-year-old Caitlin has Asperger's syndrome, a developmental disorder that makes it difficult for her to socialize and communicate effectively with others. Unable to accurately read others' emotions through their behavior and body language, she relies on a facial expressions chart and the guidance of her older brother Devon to navigate social situations. As the novel opens, Caitlin and her father are dealing with the aftermath of Devon's death in a random school shooting. Although she misses her brother's advice and wishes life could be as it was, Caitlin is unable to understand her father's grief—that is, until she reads the word "closure" in her beloved dictionary and decides that this is what she and her father need. Author Kathryn Erskine (Quaking, Philomel, 2007, YALSA Top Ten Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers) was inspired to write Mockingbird by the shootings at nearby Virginia Tech University in 2007. She wisely chose to have Caitlin narrate her own story, saving it from becoming too didactic or sentimental. Although teens may not initially understand Caitlin's seemingly unemotional acceptance of tragedy and her literal interpretation of events, they will soon become caught up in her search for closure and cheer for her as she discovers herself capable of friendship, love, and empathy. A good choice for supplementary reading in a high school psychology class, Mockingbird will also appeal to book groups for middle and high schoolers; siblings and friends of young people with Asperger's and other developmental disorders; and middle school students who enjoy thoughtful characters and a good story. Reviewer: Leah Sparks

VOYA - Leah Sparks

Gr 4–6—Ten-year-old Caitlyn seeks closure. She's not entirely sure what closure is, but she knows that it will help her come to grips with the death of her big brother Devon. And she's not the only one who needs it—the school shooting that claimed Devon's life has plunged her entire town into a morass of sorrow and confusion. But Caitlyn has Asperger's syndrome. She experiences the behavior of others as a series of unrelated vignettes whose meaning she must puzzle out. While she has some tools for solving these puzzles—the facial expressions chart in the counselor's office helps—her best guide has always been Devon. Caitlyn's extremely literal interpretations, unbiased reactions, and open-hearted attempts at friendship and empathy help those around her gain fresh perspectives. Devon always knew this about her, which is why he called her Scout, after the character in To Kill a Mockingbird. Caitlyn's errors and successes at parsing her world invite discussion and reflection. Although it can be difficult to distinguish between Caitlyn's thoughts and her dialogue when listening to this book by Kathryn Erskine (Philomel, 2010), Angela Jayne Rogers's unadorned narration is poignant and forthright, making this title ideal for a group read/listen.—Paula Willey, Baltimore County Public Library, MD

School Library Journal

Mockingbird

Mockingbird

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