New Cover

Blurb

  A small village in northern Wisconsin is the backdrop for tragedy and heroism.  The heroes in this book are a one eyed divorced butcher called the beagle and two brothers and a mother.  In a village this small it is said to be a volunteer firefighter just a pulse is required.  It balances tragedy with a sense of small town Midwestern humor.  The tragedies in this book reacquaint the author with his childhood village.  Through his experiences as a volunteer firefighter and EMT he ponders life and death.  Esquire Magazine  calls it “Quietly devastating … intimate and disarming and lovely”.

Ten sources with additional information

Berkes, Howard. "Volunteer Firefighter's Tale: 'Population 485'" National Puplic Radio. 3 Apr. 2004. Radio.

"Browse Inside: Population 485 by Michael Perry." HarperCollinsPublishers. HarperCollinsPublishers. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.

Kilter Edwards, Margie L. "We're Decent People: Constructing and Managing Family Identity in Rural Working-Class Communities." Journal of Marriage and Family 66.2 (2004): 515-29. JSTOR. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.

McEvoy, Mike. "When Is Dead Really Dead?" Fire Engineering 168.3 (2010): 28-36. EBSCO. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.

Moore, Carole. "Lights, Sirens, Action." Career World 33.5 (2005): 14-16. OmniFile. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.

Perry, Michael. "Micheal Perry- Author, Humorist, Singer/Songwriter: SneezingCow.com." SneezingCow.com. Michael Perry, 2010. Web. 08 Dec. 2010. <http://sneezingcow.com/>.

"Population 485." Reading Group Guide. Reading Group Guide. Web.

Tevis, Cheryl. "Who Will Rescue Rural America?" Successful Farming 108.10 (2010): 57-60. Wilson OmniFile Full Text Select Edition. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.

Thompson, Alexander M. "Work Without Wages: The Motivation for Volunteer Firefighters." The American Journal of Economics and Sociology 52.3 (1993): 323-43. JSTOR. Web. 8 Dec. 2010.

Village of New Auburn. Village of New Auburn, 2009. Web. 8 Dec. 2010. <http://www.newauburn-wi.com/>.

Brayden-Summarizer Ch. 12



In this chapter he talks about artifacts that have been dug up in New Auburn.  It starts out with Jack Most's finding a rock with a paw print in it.  Jack takes the rock to many experts and none of them agree on what it is.  Then he turns to a story in his own backyard, one day he looks out his window and notices indentations in his backyard.  The indentation make it look like something was buried there.  He digs up these indentations and finds a lot of roots and other junk.  Later he finds out that their use to be big sugar maples in his backyard years ago.

This chapter was written in a tone that made it sound like the last chapter.  It seems like he is summing the whole story up at the end when he uses the artifacts dug up as a metaphor for finding home or contentment.  To truly find home you have to abandon yourself to that place is what he is saying.  It is the only chapter he ends pretty much telling what he wants you to take from what you just read.  This also why it sounds like an ending because through the whole book he has talked about how he has given himself to the town by being a volunteer firefighter and now he has found home in New Auburn.

Brayden-Discussion Leader Ch.11

1) In chapter 11 he says he doesn't really like uniforms, but when going to out on a call he will usually throw an EMT shirt on or something explain his reasoning behind this?

This is because whenever someone see's a person in uniform they see them as heroic or without mistakes.  When in reality they make just as many mistakes on their job as the rest of us.  The reason he always tries to throw on part of his uniform before he goes out on a call is that he knows that his patient will be reassured by it and feel like he is even good hands even if the EMT isn't so sure about the patient's condition.

2) What are some of the reasons he put a chapter of mistakes he has made or he has seen some other EMT he works with make?

For one it is to show that even in their line of work mistakes are made and that they are only human.  He does this to reinforce the point that EMT's are just like the rest of us. Another is to put a little bit of humor into a book that is mainly pretty serious and solemn.  A perfect example of this is the story about the lady with Alzheimer's.

3) The story about the call to farm didn't really fit with the other stories in this chapter why did he put this story in this chapter?

With this chapter he is definitely trying to get the point across that they are everyday people that have lives outside of first responding.  He talks about not wanting to go out on the call because he was going to go biking but no one else showed up.  He ends the story with him fantasizing about telling the head EMT from Sandston off and refers to it as a "supreme heroic moment", just like everyday people dream of being heroic or telling a co-worker who is maybe a little bossy off.

4) What is the significance of the pig pen boy story?

The significance is that even those who many of use see as heroic don't see themselves in the same light. That when heroes look in the mirror an ordinary person who is just as embarrassing as the rest of us looks back at them.  This is significant because if we looked at ourselves as heroes we wouldn't aspire to be anything or be motivated to be better.

Graphic Organizer Chapters 11-13- Stephanie LaPointe

               

The purpose of this illustration is to show the main points in chapters 11-13.  Another purpose of this illustration was to show how Perry organized his chapters, and the significance of each of the chapters.  In chapter 11, Perry dedicates most of the chapter towards listing mistakes that many of the firefighters have made, and how one should be understanding if a firefighter makes a mistake.  In chapter 12 Perry bounces around with his stories, but he repeatedly continues to return to the subject of home.  He talks about how he wants to find a spot where he is stable and how it takes time to fit into a town.  Perry decided to end his book with the chapter titled Sarah.  As mentioned above, Sarah died in a car accident.  In this chapter, Perry shows us that firefighters are human and do show emotions.   

Discussion Leader Chapters 11-13-Stephanie LaPointe



1. Q)Why does Perry tell the story about his mother when she helped deliver a baby?

A)  The reason Perry tells this story is because of his fear of having to deal with a situation similar to delivering a baby.  Perry said that is one reason why he likes being a firefighter, most of the bad situations happen before they arrive on the scene.  Perry also said that in a case like delivering a baby, you not only have to sustain life, but deliver it as well.  This goes to show that there is more pressure, it is understandable why Perry would fear a situation like delivering a baby.

2. Q) What is the significance of the short stories Perry tells about firefighters making mistakes in chapter 11?

A)  Perry is trying to show that everyone makes mistakes, even firefighters.  People expect a lot from firefighters, which puts them under pressure.  Perry tells these short stories about firefighters making mistakes to show that its ok to make mistakes, and laugh about them afterwards.  People have to be understanding when firefighters try to help them, that since they are under pressure, they might slip up a little from time to time.

3. Q) In his book, Perry tends to skip around with his thoughts, what does Perry return to continuously in chapter 12?

A)  Perry returns to the subject of home, and what it means to him.  Perry first mentions by saying he is trying to look for a place he can stand without wobbling.  He then says it takes time to settle into your home when you first move in.  Perry says he is happy in his home, but he needs to balance being happy at home by being on the move from time to time.  He then talks about how his grandpa got him started with liking to travel.  Perry ends this chapter by giving a great quote that sums up this questions, "It is occuring to me that to truly live in a place, you must give your life to that place (pg 210)."

4. Q) Who is Sarah? What happened to her in chapter 12? Why does Perry dedicate his last chapter to her?

A)  Sarah got married to Jed, Perry's brother.  Sarah got killed in a car accident, seven weeks after she married Jed.  The reason we believe Perry decided to end the book the way he did was because how much of an impact it had on the author.  Perry talks about all the different people that have died that he has been involved with.  Perry has had to deal with hundreds of depressing situations, and we believe that the one that hit the hardest was Sarah's death.  Perry provides us with the image that he can handle his emotions in these situations, but he couldn't with Sarah's death.  It showed us that Perry is human, and that there are tough times ahead for the people that loved Sarah, but in time, things will get better.