The truth will set you free… or so the saying goes. That's certainly the case in Feathers, a book in which every character is searching for their own personal truth—especially Frannie. Frannie's best friend Samantha is stuck on trying to figure out the truth… is the Jesus Boy actually Jesus (like, the real Jesus)? Samantha really wants to know.
Frannie recognizes that the answer doesn't really matter, though; the honest truth is that, even if he's not the real Jesus, Jesus Boy's appearance has taught them all a lesson in acceptance and understanding others. And by the very end, when Ms. Johnson gives the class a writing assignment based on their own personal truth, Frannie knows exactly what she's going to write about.
Questions About Truth
- Do you think it is right of Jesus Boy to speak the truth about Trevor's daddy issues like that?
- Does it matter if Jesus Boy is actually the real Jesus? Why or why not?
- Why does Frannie choose to write about the story of Sean teaching her sign language?
Chew on This
Even though Jesus Boy isn't the real Jesus like Samantha hopes, he is still able to help Frannie and the other kids see that you shouldn't reject people outright just because they are different; you have to practice acceptance and understanding.
Frannie doesn't choose to help Trevor because she likes him, or because she feels obligated to. She does so because she finds a voice inside her that tells her it's the right thing to do.