The Cay
by Theodore Taylor
Format: Audio
Price: Free - checked out from the library
Price: Free - checked out from the library
How I heard about it: My students read an excerpt of this novel at school
Basic Premise: Set during the second world war, twelve-year-old Phillip is traveling back to America when his boat is torpedoed. He finds himself stranded on a raft in the middle of the ocean with no one but an elderly black man and a stray cat that lands them on the cay.
My Take: My Take: 9 out of 10 (scale here)
When I was in elementary school, I was one of those students who daydreamed while the teacher read. My mind was just too busy to pay attention to a boring old story. I was always surprised when the teacher would ask questions about what she had read and my peers would respond with the right answers. But there were some books - The Man Who Loved Clowns, Shiloh, Summer of the Monkies, Charlotte's Web, Stepping on the Cracks - that I do remember. And one of them was The Cay.
When I heard a chapter of it had been pulled for our class, I was eager to refresh my memory, so I checked it out for our second trip to Oklahoma. As a child, I had not picked up on the book's themes of discrimination and sacrifice, nor all the WW2 historical background. I loved all the figurative language and imagery, and I found myself looking forward to the day I could introduce this book to Charlie. I loved teaching the excerpt of the book the following week at school!
When I was in elementary school, I was one of those students who daydreamed while the teacher read. My mind was just too busy to pay attention to a boring old story. I was always surprised when the teacher would ask questions about what she had read and my peers would respond with the right answers. But there were some books - The Man Who Loved Clowns, Shiloh, Summer of the Monkies, Charlotte's Web, Stepping on the Cracks - that I do remember. And one of them was The Cay.
When I heard a chapter of it had been pulled for our class, I was eager to refresh my memory, so I checked it out for our second trip to Oklahoma. As a child, I had not picked up on the book's themes of discrimination and sacrifice, nor all the WW2 historical background. I loved all the figurative language and imagery, and I found myself looking forward to the day I could introduce this book to Charlie. I loved teaching the excerpt of the book the following week at school!
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