Customer Reviews

Mind's Eye

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The Mind's Eye is a great story by Paul Fleischman. In this book, a young girl by the name of Courtney got into a terrible accident and damaged her legs. Because her mother had passed away when she was younger, she lived with her stepfather. Not getting along with him, she was stuck at Home Care while he found a new life with another woman. Although she was lonely at first, she made new friends with Evla, and old woman. Together, they pass their time by imagining about places and things.
This book was introduced to me by Faith, my best friend. After reading it, she described it to me as a very touching story that I would fall in love with. The cover also seemed to look interesting and fun so I went ahead and read it. Even the cover seemed to tell me that this would be a book that I enjoy.
One of my favorite parts were when Elva and Courtney traveled to Italy through their imaginations. As Courtney looked through the map of Italy, they pretended to travel through its museums and wonderful sites. This gave me a feeling of wonder and adventure and I felt as though I was traveling through it, too. I never been to Italy either so I got to experience it through their imagination. It was very exciting and interesting. This is a book that should be read by everyone!

In Paul Fleischman's Mind's Eye, Courtney is a sixteen-year-old girl whose father left her and her mother when she was two. Countney did not get along with her stepfather so when her mother died, it made the situation worse. Courtney had a horse accident which has made her paralyzed. Her stepfather put her in a nursing home. She meets Elva who is eighty-eight years old and almost blind. Courtney and Elva take an imaginary trip to Italy using a 1910 travel guide. Even though the trip is only in the mind's eye, Courtney's need for love makes the journey real. Mind's Eye is a contemporary fiction book written in script.

I have just finished "Mind's Eye" and am 'casting' the roles for my grade 9 class. I have prereading questions at the ready, and can't wait for my readers to present this fascinating drama to the class. I wish I had a couple of beds for the main characters to read from, but since this book deals with the ultra-power of the imagination, what the heck... Am going to search for a Baedeker 'Italy' (as old as I can find) just for authenticity. Many possibilities for discussion. Am sure the students writing will come easily. Truly thought provoking. Beautiful without being overly sentimental. Elva, I miss you.

I haven't read all of Paul Fleischman's books, so I can't say exactly where it fits in the ranking of his books, but this was not his best. I can say that with confidence since I read "Whirligig" just about three weeks ago, and it was much better than this one. I was a little confused if Courtney was going crazy or what was going on in that girl's head. Did this boyfriend from Italy really exist? The book is just slow and the most character developkment would be from Courtney being tired and not willing do things to crazy and hallucinating. I would not recommend this book unless you just really love to read. If that is the case, I am sure you will get something out of it.

Paul Fleishman's books are always original. I was intrigued by the play-like dialogue format he used in this one.

Sixteen year old Courtney's spinal chord is severed. As her mother is no longer living, her stepfather places her in a nursing home. It is the middle of winter in North Dakota and the snow is falling outside her window. Courtney is the youngest person in the home and her roommate is 88 year old Elva, a former English teacher. Elva's mind is sharp. She is pleased to have Courtney as a roommate. She exhorts Courtney to expand her mind and convinces her to to read aloud from a 1910 edition of Baedeker's Italy so the two of them can take a virtual trip through time and space and tour Italy. They plan their routes and Courtney describes what they are "seeing." Courtney is understandably depressed and attempts to sabotage their "trip" but soon finds her own refuge in this voyage of the mind.

Fleishman has crafted a poignant and thoughtful story about survival of the spirit.

Written as a play and taking place in a convalescent home, Minds Eye is a touching story of the bond formed between Courtney a 16-year old who recently became a paraplegic and Elva, her elderly roommate who is bedridden and almost blind. A former English teacher, Elva is an educated and spirited woman. Kept company by the likes of John Greenleaf Whittier, William Blake and Robert Frost, she colors her conversations with quotes from the greats of the literary world. Depressed over her circumstances, Elva is nothing more than an irritant to Courtney. But when Elva tells Courtney a sentimental story about her late husband, Emmett, Courtney reluctantly listens. Elva explains that Emmett had always wanted to go to Europe, but passed away before his dream was realized. Elva tells Courtney that she had made a promise to Emmett that she herself would make the journey, but she became bedridden before that was possible. She encourages Courtney to join her and her husband on an imaginary pleasure trip through Italy using her 1910 Baedekers Italy as their guide.
With detailed accounts, Fleischman creates a lavish trip through Italys landmarks and countryside. For Elva, the trip becomes a time filled with fond memories of her late husband. At first, Courtney uses the trip as an opportunity to exude her anger about the new condition in which she finds herself. With little enthusiasm, Courtney reads from the travel guide and butchers the language. She unpacks her bags and ventures through Italy, and at one point takes a bold move and steers the trip in her own direction. Granting herself Medusa like powers, she pretends to ruin some of the worlds most prized pieces of art. But, as she begins to heal spiritually and emotionally, she gives herself an imaginary boyfriend.
Fleischman craftily uses the trip to display Courtneys remarkable journey to emotional and spiritual recovery. He fills the reader with hope for Courtney and all others in similar situations as she continues her journey with another roommate after Elvas death. Fleischmans choice to leave out Courtneys emotional reaction to Elvas death is an interesting one, which leaves something special for the readers own imagination. While the story could be easily understood by very young adults, the references to literary works and the spirit of this story would best be appreciated by sensitive readers. The surreal cover is a perfect complement to this imaginative flight.

"Mind's Eye" has a nice concept going, but the book is too short to sufficiently grasp the reader. The small, widely spaced pages are written in a screenplay format, so there are very few words and the main characters' lives are summed up in half of an already short page. Reading the book in forty-five minutes only gave me a small glimpse of what was going on; had the book been longer and not been a screenplay, I might have gotten to know Courtney and Elva better.

I found reading this play to be a very moving experience. Not surprisingly, Courtney's life is completely altered when she becomes paralyzed. She loses so much, and I think that Fleischman accurately portrays the way a teen would handle these losses. He also shows how a terrible accident can force a person to look deeper within and rely on her inner strength. I felt a sense of hope for Courtney by the end of the play.

This book was introduced to me by Faith, my best friend. After reading it, she told me that the book was very touching and that I would love it. The cover also seemed to look interesting and fun so I went ahead and read it . Even the cover seemed to tell me that this would be a book that I enjoy.
The Mind's Eyes is a great story by Paul Fleischman. In this book, a young girl got into a terrible accident and damaged her legs. She also lived only with her stepfather for her mother passed away along time ago. Not getting along with her stepfather, she was stuck at a Home Care while he found a new life with another woman. Although she was lonely at first, she made new friends and adventure. Together they enjoyed imagining about things and places.
I enjoyed this book very much. It taught me new values in life. I learned you can't learn everything about a person by when you first look at them. It was a fun and interesting book, and I laughed everytime the girl and her friend made up their imaginary friends. This is a book that should be read by everyone!

I love Paul Fleischman's books usually, but I found this one to be a little strange. The characters lack development and depth. The story is told in script form, like a play, which is something that I found hard to follow. I would have liked to have known a bit more about the characters themselves (background and personalities).

Of course, this is not the worst book I've ever read, but because it is lacking in many areas, I can't score it higher than one star.