Mockingbird
My wife has been doing ongoing research and review of young adult literature to help develop her middle school classroom library, and she checked out Mockingbird as part of a batch from the public library.
It's a story about a 5th-grade girl, Caitlin. She's on the autistic spectrum. Her older brother, a teacher and another student have just been killed in a school shooting. Her circumstances aren't ideal. Her single dad is out of commission, his own burdens heavy, leaving her to figure out grief on her own.
Caitlin's school counselor helps, teaching her about the power of empathy and friendship by helping her befriend a younger student who's sad. His mom has died recently--she was the teacher killed in the school shooting. She determines to find closure for herself, her dad and her new little friend.
And she does.
Her brother had started an eagle scout project. Her dad covered it in a shroud after the funeral. Caitlin convinces her dad that they need to finish it.
So they do. And they grieve. And they grow.
As Caitlin grieves, she leads others in finding closure too.
This book does several things really well.
It gave me images in my head for what it's like to have Asperger's. I know it probably gets some things wrong, but I think it did more good than harm for me.
It helped me imagine what it might be like to cope with grief over the death of a family member. (It's written from the viewpoint of someone who's learning what emotions are called and how they feel. Genius. And really helpful.)
It taught me some things about what it might be like to be related to a school shooter.
It's engaging, easy on the level of the words themselves, but an emotional read. I think you'd probably be better off for reading it. I am.
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