The Acorn People

1. The Acorn People By Ron Jones

2. Ron Jones,Narrator, Counselor at Camp Wiggin • Takes the job because he thought it would be fun • Has no training with handicapped kids except one day of in-service by the camp nurse • Afraid of “catching something” doesn’t want to touch the children • Can’t get close to these kids • At the end of the first day, he’s angry, frustrated, and has nightmares of arms and legs unscrewing in his hands • By the end of the novel, he loves these kids—sees them for who they are, not what society has labeled them

3. Benny B • Suffers from polio and is confined to a wheelchair • Speed freak who wears a crash helmet and likes to do wheelies • Described as “black and peanut in size” meaning that his upper body is larger and stronger because he must use his arms so much • Most mobile and independent, doesn’t require as much help as the other children

4. Spider • Born with no arms or legs • Talks incessantly • Natural leader who motivates the kids up “Look-Out Mountain” • Great swimmer, beats Ron in a race during the Pirate Extravaganza(cheated to win, as they tied a rope around him and pulled him through the water)

5. Martin • Blind has bright red hair that sticks out all over • Constantly smiling • Perpetual motion, always swaying or rocking • Likeable, friendly and outgoing, ladies man • Most able bodied • Very demanding of himself

6. Aaron—“Arid” • Born without a bladder so his body has no way of getting rid of toxins and waste, except through artificial means • Must wear a urine bag that has be emptied every few hours • Squirts children with urine while the children are in the pool • Always smells because the toxins and waste from his body literally come out through his pores • His smell repels any friendship • He hates his own smell, it isolates him • Skin is always clammy • First one to give away an Acorn necklace • Crowned King

7. Thomas Stewart • Has muscular Sclerosis, a disease that attacks the Central Nervous System • Cruelest ailment because he will lose all control of his muscles including the ability to swallow • Born normal, but contracted the disease, so he knows what it is like to be a normal kid • Lightest camper, only weighing 35 pounds—he is your age and only weighs 35 pounds • Mouth is always crusted over and dry as if trying to keep air out and his screams inside • Confined to a wheelchair, hunched over, covered with a blanket, always cold • He is dying

8. Dominic—Counselor who shares duties with Ron in caring for the campers • Wants a career working with kids, maybe as a PE teacher • Great cook, who cooks meals for the children and many are able to get off special diets and eat real food • Italian, from New York who likes to tell Mafia stories • Mafia stories appear to be more truth than fiction, as “friends” help pay for parties and gifts for the campers years after Camp Wiggin

9. Mrs. Nelson—Camp Nurse • Says that “most children will not live past their teenage years, it’s natures way.” Meaning that most of the children will die, as if there existence was a mistake, nature not letting them live full lives. • Tough and uncaring at the beginning, but by the end of the novel, she loves the children and they love her • Removes all the labels one night when she is drunk because she realizes that these kids are more than what society has labeled them • Teaches the young girls how to make themselves pretty by wearing make-up and fixing their hair • Directs “The Pirate Extravaganza” also known as “The Acorn Pirate” the final show that the children put on for their parents • Crowned Queen

10. Mr. Bradshaw—Camp Director • Former military man, retired Army colonel • Impressed with his own importance • More interested in maintaining order through time schedules that move children through their daily activities • More interested in maintaining the cleanliness of the camp, than in the children who use it • The only good thing about Mr. Bradshaw, is that he is absent most of the time

11. Camp Wiggin • A former Boy Scout camp that is not designed to meet the needs of handicap children • The camp has no wheelchair ramps, handicapped restrooms or walkways, wheelchairs must be pushed up stairs and over the ground which has tree roots, sticks, leaves, rocks and other obstacles

12. Look-Out Mountain • Mountain that the children must climb in wheelchairs and with only the help of Ron and Dominic • Even “normal” kids, the Boys Scouts that normally occupy Camp Wiggin have difficulty getting up this mountain • The children prove that they can accomplish tasks that “normal” children do and that they should not be judged by a label