Kathryn Erskine

Fourteen-year-old Mike, whose father is a brilliant mathematician but who has no math aptitude himself, spends the summer in rural Pennsylvania with his elderly and eccentric relatives Moo and Poppy, helping the townspeople raise money to adopt a Romanian orphan.

The Absolute Value of Mike

Caterina P.

"What's your story?" 

What would you say if someone posed this question? 

When fourteen year old Mike is asked this question, for once, he is speechless. Kathryn Erskine, weaves comedy between the lines of incredibly serious issues. For a children's novel, Erskine is able to discuss many adult issues. This novel is not just for children but for adults as well!

1: "What's your story?", most likely ninety-eight percent of you will not know what to say. When the main character Mike is asked this question he has no idea what to say, but manages to stutter "I--I don't know.". 

2: "I'm sorry Dad, that's your dream. Not mine." This sentence is never actually stated in the novel, but is implied. Mike has Dyscalculia, the inability to work with numbers, his father is a math and science genius. His father, who only wants the best for Mike, pushes him to go to Newton High school, a High school specifically for kids who excel in math and science. At the end of the novel, Mike finally works up enough courage to tell his father what HE wants. 

3. "But i'm just a kid!" This comes up many times in the novel. A fourteen year old boy is supposed to help a town adopt a child, it seems impossible; but with the help of many people it soon becomes reality. This lesson is especially important for adolescent, readers, you must make it clear to your children that he or she can achieve anything with hard work and a little bit of help.

The Absolute Value of Mike

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