Skellig critical literacy

Skellig is a novel written by the author David Almond, published in 1998. The novel follows a young boy named Michael who meets an angel in his garage. Michael has a baby sister who is very sick and a Mum who is always in hospitable with the baby.

What genre does this text belong to? So far in the book the story seems like a science fiction. The idea of an angel also gives the text a hint of religious ideas. The book seems like a science fiction because of a mythical creature and his relationship ( not romantic!) with the protagonist. This is also a tale of friendship between Michael and Mina.

What do the images suggest? A very common image/ motif in the text is birds. This is found in the sentences about blackbirds in each chapter, the road Michael and his family live on ( falcon road), Mina's obsession with birds, the question about shoulder blades and of course, the angel in the garage. One of the ideas these images suggest is evolution. Evolution in constantly brought up with Mina through conversations about dinosaurs and how they evolved into birds and other creatures. Another idea these images suggest is that humans once had wings. This is brought up in the conversation about shoulder blades. These conversations include questions about why humans have shoulder blades.

How are children, young adults and adults constructed in this text? Adults in this text are constructed as' clueless' because they are unaware of what the protagonist is doing. Michael's dad is 'clueless' because he has absolutely no idea what Michael is up to. He tells Michael to stay out of the garage and thinks he does. Children aren't brought up much in the text and the best example of children is the baby who is sick and helpless. Finally, young adults/ teenagers are the only ones who know what is going on with Skellig. The story is told through Michael's perspective and suggests that only him and Mina know what is happening. Even leaky and coot do not know about Skellig.