ANSWER KEY
Close Read: Missing May by Cynthia Rylant
Day 1
Why was Summer so happy when she came to live with May
and Ob? Include at least one quote as part of the evidence
from the story to support your answer.
Summer felt happy because:
The rusty old trailer Summer called home was as close to paradise as she
would ever know. From the moment May and Ob brought Summer back
from Ohio, they tried to make the trailer into a perfect home for a child
with promises of building a swing, and tree house, but it was the shelves of
whirligigs inside that enchanted Summer. Most importantly the love
between May and Ob and the love they shared with Summer made her
happier than she ever felt in her life.
Evidence On page 4, Summer described watching Ob braid May’s hair
for the first time, “…it was all I could do not to go to the woods and cry
forever from happiness.” Also, on page 7, May described her feelings the
first time she saw Ob’s whirligigs, “I felt like a magical little girl, a chosen
little girl, like Alice who has fallen into Wonderland.”
On page 8, Summer summarizes how she felt when she arrived to Deep
Water, West Virginia, “Whirligigs of Fire and Dreams, glistening Coke
bottles and chocolate milk cartons to greet me. I was six years old and I
had come home.”
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Copyright © 2015 by Write Score LLC
Close Read: Missing May by Cynthia Rylant
Day 2
Compare/contrast how Summer and Ob responded to May’s
death. Use a Venn diagram to gather text evidence to compare
their responses. Support your written answer with evidence
from the Venn diagram.
During the firsts six months after May died, Summer and Ob were
lost, lonesome,
lonesome and
andsad.
sad.They
Theyshared
sharedsimilar
similarfeelings
feelingsof
ofgrief
griefand
and
weakness. Then,
Then things
thingschanged.
changed.Ob’s
Ob’sheart
heartwas
wasbroken.
broken. One
Oneday
dayOb
Ob
revealed May was back with them. His behavior made Summer feel
worried, confused,
confused and
andcurious.
curious. Ob
Obclung
clungto
tothe
thehope
hopeMay
Mayreturned
returned
in spirit.
Evidence
The text on p. 10 says, “It has been nearly six months—we have gone
through two seasons –without her, and still I don’t know what kind
of life Ob and I are going to come away with…I never would have
thought us to be so lost.” On p. 16 Summer says, “But we’re not
strong any more…I think Ob’s going to die, truly die, if I don’t mend
his sorry broken heart.” In Chapter 4, Ob and Summer both change.
Ob asked Cletus if he believed in an afterlife. Cletus said, “Sure I
do…even been there once.” Ob’s face lit up while Summer’s face
went dark. Ob wanted Cletus to help him communicate with May in
heaven. Summer did not want any more reason for Cletus to be in
the trailer. Ob looked more tired, and Summer’s heart sank. She
wanted direct contact with May, not a spiritual visit. Her focus was
saving Ob.
Name____________________________
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Copyright © 2015 by Write Score LLC
Close Read: Missing May by Cynthia Rylant
Day 3
Summer begins Chapter 6 by saying, “I did not stay lost for
long.” What does her statement mean? Support your answer
using evidence from the text.
According to the text, Summer’s statement meant she recognized
she needed help to change the downward spiral. Determined and
frightened, in a desperate attempt to save Ob and herself, Summer
realized the only solution was to allow Cletus to show them a new
way forward.
Evidence
The chapter begins with a comparison to the Wizard of Oz story.
Summer described, “All our stories took a sharp turn…like Dorothy,
the Scarecrow, and the Cowardly Lion, we were all hoping…to find
what Ob needs to finally rest his soul.”
On pp. 48, 49, Ob tearfully admitted he wasn’t sure he could do it
all. He was afraid he couldn’t keep the place running. Summer
assured him that she could take care of herself, but he knew May
did not want that for Summer. Ob’s honesty gave Summer new
hope.
The chapter ends with Cletus Underwood arriving with a suitcase
and they were finally getting directions to Oz.
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Copyright © 2015 by Write Score LLC
Close Read: Missing May by Cynthia Rylant
Day 4
What was significant about the first time Summer cried in the
story? Support your answer with evidence from the text.
Summer cried after an owl flew over her in the still of night. At that
moment, Summer recognized she would never see May again. She
finally allowed herself to grieve and find peace.
Evidence
The text on p. 83 describes the owl silently flying overhead with wings
spread, and then vanishing into the night. Summer thought, “I
remembered her then. I remembered May. I began to cry. I had not
ever really cried for May…I cried and cried and could not stop
crying…For every bit of life I cried away, Ob held me hard against him
and he put more life back in me…I closed my eyes and thought of my
poor young mama and May’s poor mommy and daddy and my dear
May herself. But I didn’t dwell on them with pain or fear. There was a
tranquility in them that felt all right, and as I remembered them all,
my tears dried up and I fell asleep.
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Copyright © 2015 by Write Score LLC
Close Read: Missing May by Cynthia Rylant
Day 5
Culminating Task
Think about the story, Missing May. In your opinion, what is
the important theme Cynthia Rylant tries to convey in the
story? Use evidence from the text to support your opinion.
In my opinion, Cynthia Rylant is trying to teach readers about love, loss,
and the grieving process. The theme of the story from beginning to end
addresses how people cope with the death of a loved one. They have
different ways of grieving, with varied timeframes, and personal
spiritual needs.
Cynthia Rylant provides keen insight about the impact of love on grief.
References are made to Summer’s love and loss of her own mother at a
young age---before she could attempt to make sense of the situation.
The experiences of Ob, Summer, and Cletus Underwood dealing with
profound loss bonded them together, but illuminated the need for
individuals to find their own way forward. Ob retreated, Summer tried
to handle practical household matters, and Cletus embraced a more
spiritual approach.
The author clearly lets readers know about how important the passage
of time can be in the grieving process. While Summer, Ob, and Cletus
all coped in different ways, there were different timeframes needed for
each individual. The story references two seasons passing before
Summer and Ob could even consider moving forward without May.
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Copyright © 2015 by Write Score LLC
They needed the journey to Putnam County with Cletus to move into
the next phase of the grieving process.
Finally, the spiritual side of death was central to the theme. While Ob
and Cletus found the idea of a spirit world to be a comfort, Summer
was operating in survival mode. She was so caught up in day to day
survival, coupled with concern for Ob, that she didn’t take the
opportunity to think in the abstract until after the trip to Putnam
County. The owl thrust her into thinking about her loss in new ways
when the time was right for her in the grieving process.
I believe, Missing May has an important message for all people about
key elements in the grieving process. People need to respect different
ways of grieving loved ones with consideration to different needs
related to time and spirituality.
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Copyright © 2015 by Write Score LLC