Mockingbird

Content Warning: The Chapter 5 and 6 Summaries, as well as the Chapters 1-8 Analysis, contain references to a school shooting and graphic descriptions of gunshot injuries.

Caitlin describes a cabinet that her brother Devon and her father worked on. It was Devon’s Eagle Scout project. At this point, the cabinet is still pretty much a frame, making it a perfect space to crawl into. Caitlin does not offer particulars but says only that “Devon is gone” (2).

The unfinished chest is covered with a gray sheet: “It looked like a one-winged bird crouching in the corner of our living room” (1). Caitlin often draws the dresser with her charcoal pencils. She says that now there is a weight on her, something that holds her down and keeps her from floating away like a bird.

Caitlin’s family and friends and even people from her elementary school gather in her house. Caitlin’s father assures her that the town wants to help her. But Caitlin says she would rather not talk with them; she would prefer to hide in her brother’s room, where she has not been allowed since Devon’s death.

Among those at the house is Mrs. Brook, Caitlin’s counselor. Caitlin, mindful of her manners, tries to manage conversations, but it is a struggle.