Orphan Island

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2017

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-5

Chapters 6-10

Chapters 11-15

Chapters 16-20

Chapters 21-25

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

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Discussion Questions

Background

Literary Context: Magical Realism

A genre of speculative fiction, magical realism combines elements of fantasy and realism. However, magical realism is distinct from these other genres. Whereas fantasy novels take place (either fully or partially) in a separate, magical world (such as Narnia, Neverland, or Middle Earth), magical realism normally takes place in an alternative version of the “real” world but incorporates magical elements—for example, in a real city or country where supernatural or magical elements are at play that don’t exist in the real version of that city or country. Additionally, the protagonists and main characters in a work of magical realism are typically humans, as opposed to wizards, elves, fairies, or other mythological creatures. Examples of famous novels in the magical realism genre include One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez (1967), The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (2007), Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel (1989), The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman (2013), The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey (2000), Life of Pi by Yann Martel (2001), Hard-Boiled Wonderland at the End of the World by Haruki Murakami (1993), A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki (2013), and Mumbo Jumbo by Ishmael Reed (1972).

Whereas fantasy concerns imaginary worlds, magic realism concerns our real world, and the magic often takes on symbolic meaning rather than just providing entertainment value. For example, in Diaz’s The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, a curse originated when Europeans abducted Africans, enslaving them and forcibly relocating them to the Caribbean and the Americas. In the present day, the curse continues to plague a contemporary Dominican American family. This “curse” is a metaphor for the lasting effects of colonialism and slavery. Although a realist novel could address the same topic, the use of magical elements like the curse allows the author to more colorfully illuminate complex truths about the subject matter, such as how the lasting effects of colonialism are vast, interwoven, messy, and even sometimes incomprehensible, almost like “magic.” In Orphan Island, author Laurel Snyder uses magical elements to show the impact of one’s choices on others and how one’s responsibility for others grows as part of the coming-of-age process.

Authorial Context: Laurel Snyder

Born in 1974, Laurel Snyder is an American author of novels and picture books for middle-grade children as well as poetry for adults. In addition to Orphan Island, her middle-grade novels include The Witch of Woodland (2023), Any Which Wall (2009), Penny Dreadful (2011), My Jasper June (2019), Seven Stories Up (2015), Bigger Than a Bread Box (2012), and Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains (2008). Orphan Island is a Junior Library Guild book and was longlisted for the National Book Award. Snyder teaches at Hamline University and Emory University.

As an author with a background in poetry, Laurel Snyder has earned praise for the lyricism and imagery in her middle-grade novels, which tell stories in prose but use techniques and literary devices from poetry. Many of Snyder’s middle-grade novels belong to speculative genres such as magical realism and fantasy. However, Snyder’s novels often take place in contemporary times and explore contemporary topics such as homelessness and housing inequality, Jewish culture and identity, and substance abuse, as well as more general and “timeless” topics such as grief, friendship, and the changes that occur throughout children’s coming-of-age process. Similar to poetic devices like metaphor and simile, the use of magic allows the author to explore real-life topics in ways that aren’t possible with literal, straightforward, “true” storytelling. Orphan Island is, at its core, about “real” topics like friendship, family, responsibility, and the coming-of-age process. However, the novel’s magical elements serve as metaphors that illuminate these topics and show how they’re more complex than a straightforward description might suggest. Magical realism allows Snyder to embed symbolism into motifs like the boat, the island, snakes, and snow to illustrate the cosmic importance of seemingly simple themes.