59 pages • 1 hour read
Ann M. MartinRain Reign
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2018A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Essay Topics
Compare the portrayal of autism in Rain Reign with that of another middle-grade or young-adult book. (The website Disability in Kidlit especially recommends middle-grade titles The Real Boy by Anne Ursu and A Boy Called Bat by Elana K. Arnold, and A State of Grace by Rachael Lucas for young-adult readers.) What differences do you see in the different texts regarding how autism is portrayed? What similarities?
What is Rose’s greatest challenge in this book? Use evidence from the text to support your argument.
How might this book be different if it were set in the 1950s? What elements of Rose’s story would change, and which would be the same?
Compare Martin’s treatment of autism in Rain Reign with the one in her earlier novel A Corner of the Universe. What similarities do you see, and what differences?
What role does the rural New York State setting of the novel play? How might the book be different if Rose and her family lived in a large city? How might it be different if Rose lived in a small town in another part of the United States, like the Midwest or South?
How might Rose’s story be different if her mother instead of her father were raising her? Can you infer anything about Rose’s mother from the collection of keepsakes, and if so, what?
Does gender play a role in this book? If so, how? If not, why not? Use specific examples from the text to support your argument.
What conclusions can be drawn about the different ways in which Rose’s peers treat her? Why might some of them treat her with disrespect while others accept her?
Is it appropriate for an author without a disability to write a book from the standpoint of a character who does? Under what circumstances?
Consider Marieke Nijkamp’s reaction to this book. Why might it be important to offer portrayals of autism and other disabilities that reflect the experience of the people who are in those communities? Is there a common or universal experience that those with a particular disability share?
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By Ann M. Martin
