The Cay

Phillip is excited when the Germans invade the small island of Curaçao. War has always been a game to him, and he's eager to glimpse it firsthand - until the freighter he and his mother are traveling to the United States on is torpedoed.

When Phillip comes to, he is on a small raft in the middle of the sea. Besides Stew Cat, his only companion is an old West Indian, Timothy. Phillip remembers his mother's warning about black people: "They are different, and they live differently."

But by the time the castaways arrive on a small island, Phillip's head injury has made him blind and dependent on Timothy.

Considering that I absolutely hated this book as a child, I can't say for certain what compelled me to pick it up again after all of these years. Perhaps I wanted to see if I still felt the way 10-year-old me had felt when she first read it. But regardless of what forces drew me towards this book, I can say without a doubt that 10-year-old me had it so wrong.

After Nazis torpedo and sink their ship, Phillip, a young white boy, and Timothy, an older black man from the West Indies, find themselves stranded on a small, uncharted cay together. They, alongside their furry companion, Stew Cat, must learn to lean on one another if they hope to survive long enough to be saved...if they are saved at all.

What seems like a simple tale of survival show more soon reveals itself to be a wonderful lesson about race, ability, and faith. It's no wonder that it was dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr. This book thoroughly touched my heart, and by the end I had shed more than a couple of tears. There are a few places where the text is a bit dry and repetitive, but it is easy to forgive when the book is so fantastic as a whole.

If you were like me and first read and hated The Cay as a child, I absolutely recommend picking it up again to experience it through your newly minted adult eyes. Because if you were truly like me, you'll find a beautiful story awaiting you that you won't believe your former child-self did not enjoy. 4 out of 5 stars. show less

(Original Review, 1981-02-15)

I have some sympathy with some people in the sense that it is disappointing to re-read a cherished childhood book and have these once-unquestioned prejudices jump off the page. Quite disconcerting. However, when we were ourselves children, it was water off a duck's back. We were reading for the story, not the attitudes.

Of course we do not want to perpetuate racism or stereotypes. But our history is our history. And sometimes we have to face it, even in forms that were once considered benign. Why the books were published in the first place and what this says about the prevailing society is a question worth asking, however. That discussion is what can make them pertinent.

I still vividly recall one favorite show more book with absolutely brilliant illustrations done by the author. In the era of my childhood, it was wonderful to read about the friendship between a white American kid and and a black man. It was one of those battered-spine books even then. The stereotypes now so obvious to me were not on my screen when I was ten, mostly because I longed for adventures and a friend like that. It was a book that took me to another world. In other words, despite what I now see as cringe-worthy aspects of the story, the abiding lesson I drew in childhood was that friends come from unexpected places, from across cultures, and from across races. Not a bad place to start.

When I was ten I was blazing through Tolkien, Lewis, and Lloyd Alexander; for me they were not only stomping great stories. I also drew massive, permanent lessons from them about strength of character, perseverance, good and evil. In those old pre-Internet days at age ten I'd no idea that Tolkien and Lewis knew each other, no idea of any religious undertones or subtleties. When I re-read them now through my prism of a long life lived, I still thoroughly enjoy them while being much more aware. It's a different experience - that is not to say a negative one, but an additional one. Childhood reading is like hearing a great song for the very first time. It's free, exuberant, entirely unfettered. I too understand the dismay expressed by some modern readers. show less

This is not only a gripping story of survival, but also a powerful story of letting go of prejudice. Taking place in the Caribbean during World War II, twelve your old Phillip was on the torpedoed ship, Hato, with his mother. When Phillip awakes he is floating in a raft with Timothy, an older black deckhand. They will reach a coral island where Timothy will teach Phillip, who is now blind, how to survive. Phillip learns more than survival. He will finally "see" Timothy's kindness, caring and strength and realize that his earlier notions were wrong. This historical fiction book would be good for demonstrating how racism and prejudice may have looked during the time period around World War II (1940s) . As the Jane Addams Children's Book show more Award stated "This historic novel...arguably shows that if only people would see and value each other as individual human beings, there would be no racism." show less

I listened to this one as an audio book and enjoyed the Calypso accent of Timothy (character) rendered by Michael Boatman (narrator). Young Phillip must learn that his mother's attitude about others, based purely on their color is unreasonable and unkind, much like his new companion's superstition about their third companion, a black cat, as fate rips the three of them from their lives and leaves them to fend for themselves against all odds. A great story of companionship and survival for any age.

As an adult reading this book 50 years after its publication I can say two things. 1) I enjoyed the survival aspects of this story a lot. 2) I was a little uneasy with the representation of the character of Timothy.

"The Cay" is an exciting, entertaining read for the young adult. Phillip, an American boy living in Curacao, is on a boat back to America with his mother and several other passengers when the small boat is sunk by a German U-Boat's torpedo.

Phillip wakes up on a life raft, with a splitting headache and the company of a cat ("Stew Cat") and an aged black man from the West Indies named Timothy. Several days later, Phillip awakes blind, and shortly after the raft ends up on a small cay in the "Devil's Mouth" - an area unforgiving for ships to travel.

The survival story speaks of overcoming racism imposed by authority figures/culture. What better way to portray a person realizing there is no difference in race than that person being blind show more and reliant solely upon a person of differing race?

Taylor writes with authority - short, terse prose reminiscent of Hemingway. Although the story is written for the young adult, it is an interesting and highly provocative read and a great story for all ages. The ending, however, is less than desirable as the last chapter wraps up the remainder of the story - which could have been several chapters in itself - in only a few pages. show less