64 pages • 2 hours read
Rachel SimonRiding The Bus With My Sister
Rachel SimonNonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 2002A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
The Bus as a Source of Community
Throughout the story, the buses Beth rides represent community and independence. On the bus, Beth finds a place to belong after years of feeling alone and rejected by society and her family. The drivers become her mentors and friends. She creates her own community by spending her time riding the buses.
When Rachel comes to join her, she experiences a similar sense of community and recognizes what she is lacking in her life. The bus drivers and the bus system itself connect:
[…] riders who might have been on that run last year and are now over here, and riders frim over here who might be transferring to a bus over there—and how the journeys seem separate, yet are constantly and inextricably joined together I step back and take in […] the enormous web of the world (334).
Riding the bus allows Beth to become entangled with the web of the world rather than kept away and isolated. Beth’s fascination with buses may have been sparked when her mother and stepfather took Beth on endless bus rides to escape whoever they believed was chasing them. Beth described spending those rides looking for someone to help her. Beth’s insistence on riding the buses in her own positive way can be read as a reclaiming and re-writing of one of the darkest experiences of her life.
As Rachel’s sense of community evolves through her experiences on the bus, she begins seeking out community in her own life. After her one-year experiment with Beth ends, she finds herself RSVPing yes to parties, and one night at home, she stops working to step outside and join her neighbors as they light candles for the holidays.
Music as Expression
Beth has a hard time communicating with her siblings. Her words and favorite phrase (I don’t know) often fail to convey her meaning. They all end up frustrated with each other. One way that the Simon children do communicate with Beth is through music. They have early childhood memories of dancing to Beatles records in their house while their mother painted in the living room. Beth and Rachel loved to listen to records together when they were children and teens. During awkward family dinners with their mostly absent father, listening to songs on the jukebox would help them pass the otherwise silent time.
Beth in particular is connected with music. She has a fascination with “The Top Ten,” carrying a radio with her on the bus. Her love for music offers a gateway to connection with some of the drivers, who let her blast her radio when the bus is empty. Her infectious songs and dancing bring joy to many people. When Beth is afraid or lonely, she turns to music. In turn, her siblings do the same. Music is part of what makes Beth’s personality so vivacious. The author continually references music and Beth’s favorite songs to portray another way of communicating, connecting, and expressing oneself. Music is both an individual expression for Beth and a path to community and inclusion.
Writing to Gain Perspective
This text has an important relationship with writing. A memoir is by definition an analysis of a personal history from a new perspective. Part of the way Rachel develops her new perspective on her family history is through her one-year journey with Beth. The other crucial part she does so is by writing about it during and after the journey. Writing is Rachel’s mode of processing and healing. She writes in lieu of therapy. Her vulnerable voice exposes a judgmental, lonely woman who is treating her sister poorly because of her own internal struggles. This book carefully tracks the changes that occur in Simon, through her writing, that ultimately reveal a compassionate and loving advocate for Beth and all people with ID/DD. Without the process of writing, Rachel may not have developed the insight that led her to finally accept and embrace Beth.
Writing also represents the most important way that Beth and Rachel maintain a relationship. Even when they have nothing to talk about or are very upset with each other, Beth’s written letters provide a bridge. Beth writes letters to Rachel to let her know how much she loves her. These letters offer the reader insight into Beth’s personality. Her syntax and style leap off the page, with a distinct voice that is very different from the narrator’s. Her use of magic markers, stickers, and the ever-present signature “Cool Beth” help create a vibrant picture of Beth as a fully developed character.
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