LitPick Review
Jessica (“Jessie") and her father, Adam, take one last flight to their favorite vacation spot in Bermuda before Adam’s cancer treatment starts. However, during a violent, unexpected storm, Jessie’s dad bangs his head and she must take over the plane. She must fly and land safely. Jessie finally spots land, but she is not sure where it is. Where were they blown off course? They meet strange people who do not speak English. Jessie begins to wonder if they got stuck in a time warp and traveled back to the Mayan times. During the long days spent in this mysterious area, Jessie meets Prince, a boy who seems to take interest in her. She does not want to leave him, but they have to get home. Time is running out and they need fuel for the plane, but with communication difficulty, they cannot explain to the locals what they need. They recruit the help of a military man from the Second World War. Since all of the instruments on the plane are broken, how will they get home safely? This feels impossible, and Jessie begins to lose hope. Will she ever get home?
Opinion:
Sue C. Dugan creates stories in her mind, and then she is able to bring them to life through pages. Mayday is a wonderful representation of that. The descriptive language and figurative language written on these pages, makes it easy for readers to imagine in their heads what the characters and settings, etc. would look like. For example, when the locals celebrate with Jessie and Adam, Jessie gives us a description about how the drums feel like a heartbeat. I love how the author takes history and brings it together with the present day. With this skill, the reader gets a better understanding of the past while reading a book written in the present. The subtle romance that Ms. Dugan adds in this book makes it all the more interesting. Also, every chapter leaves you on a cliffhanger so you have to keep turning the page. The intriguing mystery established makes you think deeper and that is how you know it is a good book.
