Our Only May Amelia is adapted from the Newberry Award winning novel by Jennifer L. Holm. It is the coming of age story of a 13 year old who is being raised on an isolated farm as the only girl in a family of boys. In 1899, life on the Naselle River in South West Washington was hard for anyone, but especially for 13 year-old May Amelia Jackson, the only girl in all of the Naselle settlement. May Amelia’s Pappa thinks that hunting, fishing, and working at the logging camp are all too rough for a little girl, but that doesn’t stop May. Once May’s mother gives birth to a baby girl, it seems as though all of May’s prayers have been answered. After tragedy strikes and Grandmother Patience blames her, May runs off to Astoria to stay with her aunt. But living in the big city, despite the new and exciting things it has to offer, means that May has to act like a “proper young lady.” Life on the Naselle might be hard for a girl, but at least it is full of adventure – and family, and it is her home- her place.
