When I was a 5th grader, I remember doing a literature circle in my class with the book Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh, by Robert C. o'Brien. I remember not liking the book at first, mainly because I had a fear of rats, but after the first few chapters, I loved the book! I ended up relating to widowed Mrs. Frisby because I too, only had one parent. Mrs. Frisby had to make the dreaded decision..move her family away from the destruction that was about to occur, risking the death of her sweet son Timothy or keep her ill son Timothy safe and hope that her home, and family aren't destroyed. The story unfolds as Mrs. Frisby makes alliances, and comes face to face with wise Nicodemus who eventually helps devise a plan to rescue Mrs. Frisby's family and home while keeping Timothy safe. As a 5th grader reading this book, I was intrigued by the intelligence that the rats of Nimh possessed and was rooting for tiny Timothy to overcome his illness. Chapter after chapter I was engaged in what was going to happen to Mrs. Frisby and her lovely family!
Not to long ago, I again came across the movie, The Secrets of Nimh. The movie was released in 1982 and very many similarities to the novel. However, I do believe that the movie left out quite a few details that the book documented. Such as, the part where Mrs. Frisby (Brisby in the movie) came in contact with the NIMH society. We could see the look of fear, worry, yet astonishment in her eyes in the film, but the book gave us a sense of what she was feeling through the descriptive words the author chose to say. When young Timothy was sick, the movie did a great job portraying Mrs. Brisby as a busy single mother trying to keep her well kids away from Timothy, but keeping Timothy isolated and taken care of. We could see the love and determination that she had for her son, and we knew early on that she was going to do whatever it took to get him well.
As a teacher, I see the love of a child through a teachers eyes, and through a mother's eyes, as I have a daughter of my own. Has there every been a time when you or someone you know has had to make a difficult decision for someone in your family? How did it make you feel?
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