Kathryn Erskine’s writing is lovely – its simplicity makes it all the more beautiful. Caitlin and her new friend Michael reached out to me through the pages and made me love them. For Caitlin, it feels as if she needs to Work At It when it comes to everything – she has to work at life itself. The world is complex, and coming to terms with this can be difficult at the best of times. Brook and the gym teacher, I thought they were kind and they tried to understand Caitlin. I loved the characters Michael and Josh and how Josh changed from being a bully to a kind gentle friend. That she could not do this was another matter altogether.Ĭaitlin’s simple, confusing world is heart-wrenching. I liked how they mentioned To Kill A Mockingbird and that Caitlin acted like Scout. But her father asked her what she wanted to do, and she responded honestly – that she wanted to go out with her brother. When Caitlin’s counsellor, Mrs Brook, gently broaches the subject, Caitlin replies that she knows that Devon is dead. Her father is devastated – has Caitlin not realised that her beloved brother Devon is dead? And the bewildering world of language hinders rather than helps.įor instance, when Caitlin’s father asks her what she wants to do for her birthday, Caitlin says that she wants to go to the mall with Devon. Two teens shot Devon, another student and a teacher at Devon’s middle school. As the story begins, her beloved older brother, Devon, has recently died. She lost her mom to cancer some years earlier. Unsaid rules that govern the world make Caitlin retreat into herself time and time again. Mockingbird magazine Plot Summary Caitlin is a bright fifth-grader and skilled artist with Asperger’s syndrome.

How can Caitlin find closure when her brother Devon – who always helped her make sense of the world – is killed in a school shooting? And can she help others find closure too? Is that what empathy is about?

Caitlin’s world is confusing – why do people speak in riddles? Why do people say things they do not mean?Ī beautiful, heart-wrenching read, Mockingbird explores grief, loss and healing. I picked up Mockingbird without knowing that it was written from the point of view of a girl with Asperger’s.

Mockingbird book caitlin