The Remarkable Maria

Anne Hutchings, a former elementary-school teacher-librarian with the
Durham Board of Education, is an educational consultant.

Countless children today are living with HIV/AIDS. The Remarkable Maria
is the story of one such child.

Told in Maria’s own words, the story is upbeat despite the tragedy in
her young life. After the deaths of both parents, Maria and her younger
sister, Willie, are sent to an orphanage, where they face discrimination
from other children, parents, and even their own uncle. Thanks to Mrs.
MacKenzie, a kindly neighbour who helped care for Maria and Willie
before their mother died, Maria receives an invitation to sing and dance
on her favourite TV variety show, Babbel Box. After seeing Maria
perform, everyone agrees that she is, indeed, “remarkable!”

In June 2005, author Patti McIntosh and artist Tara Langlois travelled
to the Republic of Suriname in South America, where The Remarkable Maria
takes place. There, through SMART they conducted art workshops with
children asking them to portray Maria’s experiences in their drawings.
Many of their pictures, which Langlois used to inspire her own childlike
illustrations, are included in this book.

With its themes of injustice, discrimination, dignity in the face of
misfortune, and, of course, HIV/AIDS, this would be a useful book to
generate discussion of these issues with primary grade children.

Though Maria’s story has a happy ending, those of many other children
affected by HIV/AIDS do not. Funds raised through the sale of
“Maria” merchandise will go to support agencies in Suriname that
help these children. Recommended.