Dorris, M. (1997). The Window. New York: Hyperion.
Grade Levels: 6-9

Category: Realistic Fiction

Read-Alouds: pp. 1-14 (Chapter 1); pp. 22-34 (Chapter 3); pp. 47-53 (Chapter 5); pp.95-106 (Chapter 10)

Summary: A girl named Rayona lived with her mother after her father and mother had split apart. One day, Rayona’s mother was placed in a rehabilitation center for an alcohol problem and Rayona was placed in a foster home. After living in foster homes for a while, Rayona’s dad decided to take her to live with his mom and aunt. While living with her grandma and aunt Rayona learned more about her life than she had ever dreamed she would. She had learned more about her heritage. In the end, Rayona goes back home to live with her mother with a new look on her life.

Themes: The books main theme was Rayona’s journey to her own identity. Rayona knew she was not white but was dark complexioned. She knew that her mother was Indian but she didn’t really know much about her father’s race except for that he was black complexioned like her. When Rayona went to live with her grandma she learned that her grandma is Irish and her father was black. So Rayona had learned that she was part Indian, black, and Irish. Another theme was different family life styles and how some families live differently. Rayona’s family was divorced and she went to live with her grandmother. Some children have parents that are married, some children live with a parent with either a single mother or a single father, and other children may live with grandparents. I noticed some race issues in the book too. Before Rayona’s father sent her to live with her grandma there was the issue with the social worker trying to place Rayona with a family. The social worker asked Rayona, “Would you be more comfortable in a white home or with a black family?” (12) The issue of which family to place Rayona was a problem because Rayona’s mom was not black. What the social worker didn’t know though was that Rayona’s mom was Indian.

Discussion Questions: Which characters of this book do we know the least about and why doesn’t the author describe those characters to us?
In your opinion, did Rayona’s father do the right thing by sending her to her grandma’s and why or why not?
Continue the story and describe how Rayona’s life would be now, living with her mother again.

Reader Response: I liked this book because young adults could relate to the story. I could relate to this story because my parents were divorced when I was young and they both were alcoholics at the time. I use to stay at home with my brothers but we never went without food like Rayona. I had some strong feelings towards Rayona’s father at first because he didn’t take her himself. I thought that Rayona’s father should have raised her until her mother had gotten better. I also didn’t think Rayona should have been sent to different foster homes. But when Rayona’s father sent her to live with her grandma, I thought he did the right thing because she was able to learn about herself and her family.

A wisp of a book that gives backstory to a younger Rayona, featured in Dorris' A Yellow Raft in Blue Water, this prequel was published 10 years after its sequel. In The Window, we meet the unforgettable Rayona, who continually waits for her alcoholic mother to come home. Inevitably, her mother enters rehab, and with her sometimes-father unable to take her in, Rayona bounces through the foster care system. Ultimately, she is taken to stay with her extended female family by her father, and learns about unconditional love while in their care.

Interestingly, despite the themes of alcolohism, abandonment and race, this book is written for a young adult audience, in contrast with the more mature sequel. While The Window sheds light on some unanswered questions from Yellow Raft, I was left wishing for more. Unfortunately, with Dorris' suicide occuring shorty after the release of this book, there will be no answers. ( )