Summary
Chapter 1
Michael explains that he found “him” lying in the dirt, dust, and darkness in the garage. He was so filthy and pale that he seemed to be dead. Michael finds him when his parents are with Dr. Death, worrying about the baby.
The family has just moved into the house, as winter is ending. The real estate agent, Stone, told them to imagine the garage—actually a rubbage heap of sorts—as something fun like a hideaway. Michael does not like this house at all, especially because he knows that the previous owner, an old man named Ernie Myers, died there and wasn’t found for a week.
Michael wishes he could go back to their old house, but his parents seem to think this is an adventure. However, the adventure ends when the baby comes too soon.
Chapter 2
On Sunday morning, Michael nearly makes it into the garage, disregarding his parents’ warnings. He brings a flashlight and shines it to see the cracked floors, broken furniture, ancient and rotting doors, pipes, cables, and more. The people paid to clean the house say they would not go into the garage.
As Michael is about to slip in, Mum catches him and admonishes him that he cannot go in there until they make sure it is safe.
Michael sighs and says he understands. His Mum goes back to “the stupid baby” (5).
Chapter 3
The garden is also supposed to be wonderful, but right now it is simply full of weeds, bricks, and stone. Mum brings Michael a sandwich and a Coke and apologizes for things being so crummy right now. She asks if he understands, and he replies that he does.
After his mother is gone, Michael thinks of their old house, his friends, Leakey and Coot, and how they’d be playing football right now.
The doorbell sounds in the distance and Michael knows it is Dr. Death. The man’s real name is Dr. Dan, but in Michael’s head, he is Dr. Death because he has a gray face, black spots on his hands, and smokes cigarettes in his car.
Michael stands; before he can think twice, he turns on his flashlight and goes straight into the garage. Dust floats in the beam of light. There are dead bluebottles everywhere. The furniture and detritus are packed in tight. Cobwebs cling to Michael as he walks carefully through old newspapers and magazines. Dust clogs his nose and he knows he will have to go back.
Michael shines the light across tea chests, and that is when he sees the man, sitting with his legs in front of him and his back against the wall. He is dusty and dirty, and his face is pale. The man asks, in a squeaky, unused voice, what he wants.
Michael hears his Dad calling before he can reply, and he rushes out. Dad admonishes him gently and tells him staying out of the garage is for his own good.
Chapter 4
That night, Michael cannot sleep. He imagines the man coming into the house, but he tells himself it's just a dream. He can hear his Dad snoring, his baby sister’s rattled breathing, and Mum’s cooing voice.
It is almost dawn when Michael ventures into his parents’ room. He looks down at his sister. Her heart is beating fast and she seems hot. He wonders if she is going to die, and he emembers her in the hospital with tubes and wires.
Mum wakes and softly asks what he wants. He says "nothing" and goes back to his room. He wonders what the man with the cobwebs in his hair wants.
Chapter 5
Michael asks his parents at breakfast when the garage will be cleaned out. Dad says it will be cleaned out soon, but that that is not important now.
Michael did not change schools when they moved, even though it is now a longer bus ride to get there. He watches the people on the bus and thinks about how you never really know what is going on in people’s lives. He could stand up and say that there is a man in their garage and his sister is sick, but he isn’t going to.
It is strange being at school because so much is different for him yet school is the same.
At lunch, Michael cannot be bothered with his friends and goes and sits alone on the edge of the field. Mrs. Dando, one of the yard ladies, comes over to try to make conversation and give him one of the gumdrops she gives to the kids who are sad, but he rejects it.
His mind flicks to the man in the garage. It must have been a dream.
Chapter 6
When Michael gets home from school, his Dad is grinning about the hard work he’d done. He moved old Ernie’s toilet, which had been in the living area near the end of the old man’s life, outside to the garden. He shows Michael some old birds he found that are nearly as hard as stone.
After Dad goes upstairs to take a bath, Michael decides he is going to go into the garage. He tiptoes inside with his flashlight and hears the scuttling and scratching. He tells himself he is stupid; he was dreaming, and he would never see the man again. But he does.
Chapter 7
The man hasn’t moved. He sighs and asks in his squeaky voice for an aspirin. Michael tells him that they’re going to clean out the rubbish and that the garage could collapse. The man’s face is pale and his black suit is dirty. He pops a spider into his mouth.
Michael asks if he is Ernie Myers. The man is disdainful of that and asks Michael what he wants. Michael replies nothing. He tells the man he can come inside; the man laughs but does not smile. Michael asks if there’s anything the man would like to eat, and he replies "27 and 53"; Michael is confused. The man tells him to go away.
Michael backs out into the light. He can see Dad through the frosted bathroom glass, and he can hear him singing.
A voice asks if he is the new boy. Michael turns around and sees a girl’s head sticking above the wall. He says yes, and she says she is Mina. He stares at her. She says, “Well?”, and he is confused. Finally, he says his name; she tells him it is nice to meet him and jumps down.
Chapter 8
After Dad’s bath, he says there is no food in the house and asks if they should order Chinese. Michael says he wants 27 and 53. Dad laughs at his quick response.
The family eats their dinner and Mum tries to ask about Michael’s school, but then the baby throws up. Michael leaves half his food and Dad reaches for it, but Michael teases him that he can’t get fat. When no one is looking, he tips it into the takeout tray and takes it to the outside bin.
Chapter 9
Later that evening, Michael sees Mina in a tree in the front area of another house. She has a book and a pencil and looks like she is working hard. Dad wonders who that is, so Michael tells him.
Michael wanders over to her; she chides him for scaring away the blackbird, but she says it will be back.
Mina tells him she lives here and asks about his sister. She shows him her drawings of birds and points out her favorite goldfinch. She asks if he likes drawing, and he says that he sometimes does. She replies that drawing helps you look at the world more closely.
When it is time to go in, she tells him she’d like to see him again and that she’d also like to see his baby sister.
Chapter 10
Michael tries to stay awake but cannot; he dreams of the baby in the blackbird nest in Mina’s garden. She gets stronger and flies away.
Michael wakes and sneaks outside, taking aspirin and the takeout trays. He wonders if he is crazy, but he takes a deep breath and steps inside the garage.
He sees the man and tells him he brought things. The man squeaks that he is not as stupid as he looks. He is weak, though, so Michael has to help him eat. He loves every minute of it, groans, and calls it the “nectar of the gods.”
Michael observes the creaks and cracks in his face and the tiny red veins in his eyes and dusty, sweaty smell. He asks where he is from—”Nowhere”; what he will do when they clean the garage—”Nothing." Michael says there is a doctor for his sister, but the man says "no doctors." He asks if the man can do anything for the baby, but he just says babies are spittle, mucus, and tears. He belches and Michael can smell dead things. He tries to help the man steady himself and feels, under his shoulder blades, something folded up.
Michael asks again who he is, and the man says he’s nearly nobody but he is mostly Arthur Itis, who is turning his bones to stone.
Michael tells him he will bring him more food and will try to keep the garage from being torn down.
Back inside, he tiptoes in and looks at the baby. He dreams that his bed is a nest.
Chapter 11
The next morning, Dad complains about not being able to find the aspirin.
At school, the science teacher Rasputin talks about evolution and shows the students a poster. Michael remembers what he felt on the man in the garage and asks what shoulder blades are for. Rasputin admits he doesn't know.
After class, Coot runs around pretending to be a gorilla. Michael tries to play football, but he is too tired to do well.
Mrs. Dando comes over to say hello. She encourages him by saying that babies are strong and resilient.
School continues and then Michael takes the bus home. An old man with a Jack Russell sits next to him. He smells like urine and smoke. He asks about Michael’s evolution picture and babbles on. Michael says there is a man in his garage.
Chapter 12
When Michael gets home, Dr. Death is there and Mum is very upset. Dad tells Michael the baby has to go back to the hospital for a bit. Mum puts things together for the baby. She is distracted, but Michael asks what shoulder blades are for. First, she is exasperated, then she feels bad about her exasperation: she says she thinks that those were where wings once were when people had them. Michael says that is a fairy tale, but he asks if the baby had wings. Mum smiles sadly and says yes: sometimes, it seems like the baby never fully made it down from heaven.
Michael holds the baby before she goes away. He feels her soft bones and skin. Back when Dad and Michael are home, he draws a picture of a skeleton with wings from the shoulder blades.
He sees Mina on the back wall.
Chapter 13
Mina understands that Michael is unhappy, and he tells her about the baby. She sighs and offers to show him a secret place, saying it’ll only take a few minutes. Michael follows her to the end of the street and through back gardens until they arrive at a green gate. She takes out a key, unlocks it, and they venture inside. A cat joins them and Mina explains that it’s Whisper.
The windows are boarded up and there is a sign that says "Danger," but Mina declares it is just to keep vandals out. They slip inside and ascend the darkened stairs to the attic. Mina asks if he is brave and says he has to be.
Inside, they crouch down and are very still. They are on uneven floorboards and under a sloping ceiling. Glass from the window is on the floor.
Suddenly, a pale bird rises up from the corner of the room and goes to the window. Another joins. Michael is breathless. The birds grip the frame and then fly out. Mina says they are tawny owls, and points to a back wall with plaster and bricks. She says that is where the nest is and that they shouldn't get too close because they will fight to the death. Michael is stunned, and Mina laughs.
They rush back outside and she makes him promise to tell no one.
Chapter 14
The next morning, Michael begins trembling for no reason, so Dad calls the school and tells them Michael is having a hard time and will be staying home. Michael helps Dad with projects around the garden. During a break, they talk about what they'd like the garden to look like and how lovely it will be for the baby.
It is hard work. Michael’s arms are sore and he has pollen and dust in his nose. He dreams of the baby, strong and adventurous, crawling around out here.
Michael walks over to the garage and calls in, “You can’t just sit there! You can't just sit like you’re waiting to die!” (47.) No answer.
Dad and Michael visit the hospital. The baby is in the glass case again, with wires and tubes going into her. Mum says she is fine and can come home in a few days.
On the way home, Dad says they can get Chinese again. When they pull up, they see Mina, and Dad tells Michael to run off and play.
Chapter 15
Michael tells Mina the baby might not die. She is pleased, and then says he wasn’t at school. He says she wasn’t either, and she explains that she is homeschooled because school inhibits real curiosity, creativity, and growth. Michael isn’t sure about that.
They are quiet for a minute. He says he liked seeing the owls, and that he dreamt of them. Mina smiles and says she listens for them all through the night. Michael makes a hooting noise with his hands, and Mina asks if he can teach her. She claps her hands together and says it is brilliant.
Michael tells her he has something to show her too, but he’s not sure if it’s real. Her eyes widen. He stands and says he has to go, but first asks if she knows what shoulder blades are for. She confidently replies that it is a proven fact that those are where wings once were.
Chapter 16
Michael brings the man in the garage more 27 and 53. He asks how the man knows about them, and the man says it was Ernie’s favorite. He used to watch Ernie through the window and find his leavings.
Michael asks if he needs anything else, and the man asks for brown ale. He says Ernie used to have brown ale and not finish it.
Michael tells him that he has someone he wants to bring—a girl who can help him. He says nothing, then laughs, but doesn't smile. Michael feels himself trembling again and becomes distressed; he says he doesn't know what to do—the man is ill with arthritis and doesn't eat. Michael is worried about him, and the baby might die. He finally says that Mina is nice and won’t tell anyone; she is clever and can help. The man grumbles about "damn kids."
On the way out, Michael asks if the man will think about the baby getting better. He clicks his tongue. Michael begs him to. The man answers that he will.
Outside, Michael hears the blackbird singing and the owls hooting. He makes the hooting noise and hears it echoed.
Chapter 17
All morning, Michael works on clearing the garden with Dad, then goes to Mina’s garden. He looks at her book and asks if she is doing science. She laughs and says his mind is closed: she is drawing, painting, reading, looking, and feeling. She picks up a book of William Blake poems and reads one to him. He has not heard of Blake. She says Blake wrote poems, painted pictures, and saw angels in his garden.
She beckons him to sit and tells him to listen carefully. He does, but he can't hear anything out of the primary. She says to listen deeper and harder for the tiniest noise—the noise comes from inside. Finally, Michael’s breath catches: he hears the chicks. He can hear the tiny noise with the other noises. He closes his eyes and imagines them. Mina talks of their tiny hollow bones, their evolution, and how they can fly.
She asks about the baby, and Michael says she might be okay. Mina smiles. She makes a hooting noise. Michael said he did it in the night and heard it. She shrugs that she dreams, walks in her sleep, and might have replied.
She reminds him about the mystery he has for her, and he says he might show her this afternoon.
Analysis
Readers meet Michael at a difficult time in his life. He and his parents have moved into a new house that needs a lot of work, but before they can make any real progress, his baby sister is born and immediately requires intensive medical care for a weak heart. Michael feels cut-off from his friends due to this disruption in his life; he wonders how so much can be normal yet completely different at the same time. He doesn’t dislike the baby or resent her per se, but he does have to come to terms with his changing relationship with his parents. We largely see Mum and Dad through Michael’s eyes, but even indirectly, their worry, stress, and concomitant (albeit inadvertent) neglect of Michael are quite palpable. Michael responds to all of these changes not by rebelling, but rather by sinking into himself. He already seems to be a more introverted child, but these circumstances push him more inward. He doesn’t open up to Mrs. Dando, he only reveals part of his concerns to his parents, and he spends time by himself.
Michael’s solitary nature is challenged by two figures: Mina and Skellig. Mina is very different from Michael in a few ways. She is a more confident child and a more iconoclastic one. She is profoundly intellectually curious, she is deeply connected to the natural world, and she has a greater degree of comfort with ambiguity, unanswered questions, and mystery. She isn’t perfect—her snobbishness about her version of school as compared to Michael’s is problematic—but she is the perfect companion for Michael during this time in his life. Her nurturing nature, her ability to accept Michael for who he is, her intuition, her compassion, and her willingness to engage in adventure and creative endeavors help Michael come out of his shell. Even more conspicuously, the mere fact that she can see Skellig assures Michael that he is not crazy, which is something he needs at this point.
As with most children’s books, Almond makes a case for children and adults living in two different and only slightly overlapping worlds. The adults in this novel are not hostile—at their worst, they’re arrogant (Dr. MacNabola) or a little unlikeable (Dr. Death)—but they’re in their world and are not always attuned to their children. Michael’s parents are justifiably worried about their daughter and Michael himself does not want to worry them more by sharing with them his concerns about Skellig or his unhappiness in general. Mina, though, is insightful, intuitive, and knows that Michael is sad. She knows when and how to help him, and she knows that merely believing him matters. Both she and Michael are also capable of finding beauty and the extraordinary in a creature that most adults would find dangerous, ugly, and terrifying. It is their love, patience, and complete acceptance that allow Skellig to heal. Critic Don Latham writes, “Almond casts a skeptical eye on the age-old notion of the innocent child in need of protection from the corruption of the adult world, and instead offers another possibility: the concept of the child as morally complex, capable of wonder and also great empathy.”
Turning to Skellig himself, one of the most delightful ambiguities of the text is who or what Skellig is. Michael and Mina ask him multiple times, but they never receive a thorough answer, and it is Mina’s assertion that sometimes “we just have to accept there are things we can’t know…Sometimes we think we should be able to know everything. But we can’t. We have to allow ourselves to see what there is to see, and we have to imagine” (140). First, it seems like he might simply be a homeless man, but this quickly fades away once he starts eating bugs and Michael can feel something strange on his back. That "strange thing" is wings, of course, and now one wonders if he is an angel.
Those wings are part of a larger motif of birds in the text. Michael, Mina, and the baby are associated with birds, just as Skellig is. Even Michael’s parents, who aren’t particularly associated with birds, do parallel the bird parents in their fierce dedication to their young. The actual birds in the text are remarkable, complicated creatures that are capable of the most delicate ministrations and the most savage acts of nature. Birds as a whole symbolize freedom, which is what both Michael and Skellig want in very different ways. The theory of evolution, especially as discussed with dinosaurs evolving into birds, and human beings evolving from angels, also plays a part here. Later, when Michael, Mina, and Skellig do their dance, they seem to have wings, and when Skellig heals the baby, she, too, is pictured with wings. They are “evolving": growing stronger, like the fledglings, so they can take their metaphorical flight.
