Comments on: Out of my mind

By: Nina Lindsay

Nina Lindsay — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 15:36:53 +0000

I’ve now MOCKINGBIRD as well…and don’t quite understand the NBA nomination for this one. It’s a good book, solid, but there isn’t a whole lot there…characters, setting, theme are not developed much through the story. It seems like a surface level treatment to deliver a message…which is clearly the author’s intention, from her note. She does an excellent job of what she intended. Sharon Draper does a better job, I think. Neither seem to me to be Newbery level writing.

(I finsihed MOCKINGBIRD on the plan to Chicago, where I’m now at the downtown Main Library for the Internet connection. Holiday Inn: bad points on the wireless! Harold Washington Library: 10 points for customer service! This may be it for me though for the next few days,)

By: Blakeney

Blakeney — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 00:48:39 +0000

I found Melody’s voice more consistent and convincing than Caitlin’s. I think OUT OF MY MIND maintains a tighter focus on a theme kids can connect with – living in a shell that doesn’t seem appealing, fear of and the experience of rejection and being left out. Most kids can relate even though they don’t have cerebral palsy. MOCKINGBIRD tried to bring together disparate themes which had difficulty in my mind reaching resolution in simplistic ending.

By: Sondy

Sondy — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 02:26:44 +0000

I read MOCKINGBIRD and OUT OF MY MIND too close together — they detracted from the memory of each other. By the time I read the second one, I felt like I’d already heard this story. In fact, now I’m trying to remember which I read first! I think the one I read first was the one I liked best, but now I’m not sure which one that was. I think it was probably OUT OF MY MIND, which hit a little nearer home because some good friends have a son with cerebral palsy. But I’m not even sure. My feeling with both books was that they were very good — but not Great.

By: Kiera

Kiera — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 19:31:30 +0000

I’m with you, DaNae, OUT OF MY MIND booktalks itself. It’s been a runaway hit with both boys and girls in my library. I loved Melody’s voice as well.

I found the insider-perspective-of-an-outsider in both works compelling. But I agree with Monica- there was definitely something easier about getting into Melody’s mindset. Perhaps it’s because the very nature of autism can be alienating for ‘typical’ readers. I’m not sure.

Both books presented some glaring plot issues, though. In OUT OF MY MIND, besides the failure of her parents to look into communication devices earlier, I was not convinced by the episode with the near-death of her little sister. That, to me, felt manipulative. In MOCKINGBIRD, I thought the resolution was too schmaltzy and convenient. There were a few lines of dialogue between Caitlin and her father that felt forced and overly sentimental. I think that’s what I appreciated more about OUT OF MY MIND- it was tougher. And while the conclusion wasn’t as organic as I’d hoped, Melody’s development unfolded more authentically than Caitlin’s.

By: DaNae

DaNae — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 18:17:15 +0000

I don’t want to detract from the Newberiness of this discussion. But since these two peer reviews from my students came in today on OUT OF MY MIND, and you happen to be discussing the book, I thought I’d share.

From a boy who admitted the book made him cry:

“This book definitely changes your view of the world and the people inside of it. It makes you feel sorry, sad, and angry. It changed my life.”

From the world’s sweetest 6th grader:

“This book makes you think about people in your school. Do you say hello. No, you smile and show that you feel sorry. People like Melody don’t want that. They want a friend. Try it; it will change your life.”

By: Jess

Jess — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 17:21:47 +0000

While I found the voice in Out of My Mind much less grating than the voice in Mockingbird, I still don’t think it’s Newbery quality. I can definitely see how it’s the kind of book that’s a word of mouth phenomenon, like DaNae said, and an interesting, compelling read, but I didn’t see much to distinguish it in terms of plot or characters (the side characters). It takes a long time for anything to happen, and when things do happen, it doesn’t feel organic but more like a plot imposed by the author to pick up the pace and introduce some drama. And yeah, they really didn’t look into new technology before this?

By: Monica Edinger

Monica Edinger — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:29:41 +0000

I agree with both of you completely. Do have to say this went down a lot easier for me than MOCKINGBIRD.

By: Alys

Alys — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:04:08 +0000

I brought up the “her parents have really *never* heard of this technology??” question to a friend of my who works with severely handicapped children, and she said I would be shocked and appalled at the lack of self-education about their child’s disorder among many parents. Yet at the same time Melody’s parents seemed very involved, the type that would be researching these sorts of things on their own. And even if many of Melody’s early teachers were criminally incompetent, children, especially children with severe physical handicaps, are not isolated to school and home. Where were the doctors, physical therapists, occupational therapists, and myriad other specialists and why weren’t they recommending this technology?

I didn’t like the “plane left early” plot twist either. Any airline that made a habit of leaving early without its passengers is not going to get a lot of repeat customers. There could have been other ways that the quiz kids could have been heinous to Melody without such an unlikely scenario. I also think the teacher would have called to let her parents know that the plane had left, rather than letting them show up at the airport. By not calling the parents, he opens himself up to even more discrimination charges. I felt the author was manipulating this scene simply to make the final realization more dramatic, since finding out in the airport as they’re about to leave is more devastating than a simple phone call.

I agree with DaNae: I liked this book, I can’t keep it on my shelves, and middle grade girls are both fascinated and will learn something of empathy, but I don’t think it’s Newbery quality.

By: Claire

Claire — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 06:25:53 +0000

A quick p.s.! I just re-read my comment and I totally didn’t even acknowledge Ms. Draper’s own expertise — a huge omission. Obviously she offers a parent-insider’s perspective on all of the issues she raises in the book, even though she is very clear in the introduction, saying that Melody is her own character and not based on her daughter or any other individual. So her knowledge as an author is extremely powerful and commands a lot of respect from me as a reader.

I wish that resolved the dissonances that I see in the text — are some just that it’s not reflective of 2010 and should have been historical fiction? I don’t doubt the author’s understanding or knowledge of her subject, even if I’ve voiced concerns about some logical problems I perceive. Just thought that was important to clarify!

By: Claire

Claire — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 05:43:05 +0000

Most of my problems with it fall under those same logistical categories that both of you mentioned. You have to fight really, really hard for many years to get a speech device and a 1:1 aide — school districts, insurance companies, etc. Clearly her parents are invested in her success, informed about her options, confident in her intelligence, and strong, persistent advocates. So there’s some dissonance there — she had daily access to a letter board and (it’s explicitly stated) perfect spelling and grammar… but nobody paid attention? And she was still in a sheltered classroom? That’s the real problem facing real-life kids in Melody’s situation — access to learning and using structured, fluent, verbal language, accomplished through gifted teachers and advocates who can take on school districts and insurers for their children. Verbal fluency alone is an almost insurmountable real-life hurdle — developed only through massive amounts of work and persistence and luck and support — that this book pretty much ignores, as it ignores the fact that few parents have access to the financial and educational resources that it takes to be a full-time fighter for their child’s rights. In doing so, I think it really does a disservice to the many people who fight for access so that they (or their children) can communicate successfully. This would have been a very different book, with different problems, if Melody’s parents hadn’t had the education, resources, and access that they did — and that many people do not have.

I want to hear reviews from assistive device users, and people within that larger community. Is it enough to be represented positively in a book? If a story makes a fifth grader reassess her perspective on a kid with CP, does that make the book a success? Is it only as a politicized adult that I expect more nuance, characters with depth and personhood beyond what they represent? I don’t mean to be pat here, because I think these are genuinely important questions — with so little representation of disability out there, is this a truly noteworthy and commendable example of literature for young people?

I don’t mean to be entirely negative about the book, either, because I think there are some things that it accomplishes with an expertise and sensitivity that few books have achieved. The descriptions of Melody’s physical reactions, for example, have an authenticity that just shines. There are a lot of wonderful things in it. But for me as a reader, they’re not quite enough.