Reviews for My Aunt Ruth

The average rating for My Aunt Ruth based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2018-11-21 00:00:00 Kimberley Peters Missing May, Cynthia Rylant Missing May is a children's book, the recipient of the 1993 Newbery Medal. It was written by Cynthia Rylant, who has written over 100 children's books such as The Islander. The novel is set in present-day West Virginia. 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 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 died. 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. تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز بیست و دوم ماه اکتبر سال 2005 میلادی عنوان: جای خالی می؛ نویسنده سینتیا رایلنت؛ مترجم نسرین وکیلی؛ تهران، چشمه، ونوشه، 1383؛ در 96ص؛ شابک 9643621790؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان امریکایی برای نوجوانان - سده 20م ماجرای نوجوانی به نام «سامر» پس از درگدشت عمه‌ ی محبوبش:«مِی» کنار تریلی ظاهر شد؛ «می» که دریایی از محبت بود و بس، «می» که شش سال گذشته مادر سامر بود - شش سال پر از شادی - «می» که دیگر در این دنیا نبود؛ اما فقط «اُبِ» پیر، شوهر غمگین او هر از گاهی، حضور او را حس می‌کرد و حرف‌های اُب در اینباره ابدا مایه ی خوشحالی سامر نشد؛ برای او همین کافی نبود که «می» را چنین وحشتناک از دست بدهد، کافی نبود که یکه و تنها، همه ی سعی خود را به کار بندد تا اُب را که آگاهانه می‌خواست خود را به دست مرگ بسپارد، زنده نگه دارد؟ او باید خود مستقیم از «می» پیامی دریافت می‌کرد؛ بدتر از همه اینکه همکلاسی او «کلتوس آندروود» دیوانه هم، خود را وارد ماجرا کرده بود؛ کلتوس نیز مانند اُب دنیای ارواح را باور داشت؛ او از اینکه با اُب و سامر در باغچه «می» به انتظار بنشیند به شدت خوشحال بود...؛ ا. شربیانی

Review # 2 was written on 2015-12-07 00:00:00 Shana L. Porter Read this, my friends. It's good medicine. Heartwarming, realistic, subtle, and funny in a subdued style. Winner of 1993 Newbery Medal. Set in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia, present day, this is one of the better depictions of grieving, despair, and eventual renewal. It's also a story about adoption, and loving relationships between young people and old folks. Summer's parents died when she was a baby, leaving her orphaned. After being passed from one reluctant relative to another, she finally finds a home at age six, moving in with her kindly but quite elderly relatives, Aunt May and Uncle Ob. Summer finds a serene happiness in their kitschy old trailer, surrounded by pinwheel wind spinners -- the colorful whirligigs they create and sell. Happy, that is, until Aunt May suddenly dies, six years later. Now, with his beloved wife gone, Ob must step up to the plate as primary caregiver, but he misses May so much, it's plain hard to get up in the morning. The days turn gray and bleak. In a sense, old Ob has become the orphan. Summer, now 12 years old, is there for him. She forms an initially reluctant friendship with Cletus, because this oddball classmate -- bizarre suitcase always in tow -- has a positive affect on Uncle Ob. Cletus understands the grieving old guy, perhaps because he had a near-death experience himself. Eventually, they all go for a drive, pulling up at a sign labeled "small medium at large" (chuckle). They are hoping to commune with May's spirit. In time, as grief waxes its way in an accepting environment, Ob decides to "turn that buggy around" -- a pivotal moment, reflecting his decision to shake it off and start living again. A sleeper type of story that seemed almost negligible when I read it, but -- surprisingly enough -- it has stayed with me for two decades. Must have burrowed into my heart.