47 pages • 1 hour read
Laura MartinFloat
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2018A 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
Ableism and Disability
Content Warning: This section contains discussions of ableism.
In Float, Martin includes tropes of traditional superhero narratives combined with coming-of-age character arcs to draw a clear parallel between the campers’ special abilities and the challenges and discrimination experienced by children living with disabilities in the United States. The kids who attend Camp Outlier all need accommodations to help them manage their RISK factors: Emerson needs a weighted vest, Anthony needs flame-resistant clothing, and Zeke needs a skunk as a service animal. Mr. Stink, the skunk, provides exactly the kind of support to Zeke that real-life service animals (such as guide dogs for the visually impaired) provide to people with disabilities. In Float, RISK kids have certain government protections, and they are all entitled to accommodations in school. However, Martin makes clear this was not always the case. She also suggests that RISK kids’ existing rights are under threat from legislation like the RISK Reduction Act, which seeks to isolate, persecute, and endanger those with RISK factors. These details parallel the rise in disability rights activism in the United States and around the world in recent decades, as well as the potential social and legislative threats that people with disabilities still face. Just like RISK kids, people with disabilities have some legal protections but have historically experienced repression, institutionalization, and other injustices.
On a social level, RISK kids experience alienation and prejudice at home and at school, which many real kids with disabilities also experience. In the novel, Gary uses a pejorative term for RISK kids to describe Emerson, not because he thinks the term is acceptable, but because it has been used against him in the past, and, in his anger, he uses it to hurt just as it has hurt him. Gary has ADHD and ODD, so his experiences in Martin’s narrative straddle the line between RISK factors and neurodivergence. Gary and Emerson both note that some people want to fix or cure RISK kids, instead of recognizing that their RISK factors are part of who they are, just like many disabilities and neurodiverse presentations. Although RISK kids have a lot of experience with alienation and prejudice, Camp Outlier gives them the opportunity to access community and solidarity with other kids who are like them. Emerson notes that going to the nurse’s office at school is embarrassing, but at camp, it’s actually a fun activity that helps him feel normal for the first time in his life. During his time at camp, Emerson gradually realizes that having a RISK factor does not mean that he or any of the other kids at Camp Outlier cannot live full lives.
Living Life Fully
At the beginning of Float, Emerson actively avoids situations that frighten him or could put him in danger. He grows up constantly worrying about floating away—worries exacerbated by his mother’s anxiety and deep desire to protect him. As a result, Emerson tends to stay away from other kids and from physical activities. His self-confidence is low, and he’s unwilling to step out of his comfort zone. His arrival at Camp Outlier represents a profound change of environment and routine—a challenge he will either rise to and thrive or reject and remain in the status quo of his sheltered and isolated life. The scene in which Hank and Eli throw Emerson’s shoes into the lake—the story’s inciting incident—forces Emerson out of his comfort zone and catalyzes his character arc, pushing him toward a life fully lived. As he moves through his fear of losing one of the fail-safes that keep him grounded, he also realizes how much easier it is to run around without wearing heavy metal shoes. When he plays capture the flag in the rain—something he’s never done before—he learns that it is okay to be a little uncomfortable. As he learns to distinguish between true danger and discomfort, his life begins to expand, opening up with countless new possibilities.
Hank introduces the other Red Maple boys to the concept of a life list, which provides a framework for living a full life. Each time the boys accomplish something on their list, they have to add something new. That way, there is always more to reach for, and they can continue to thrive instead of allowing their lives to grow stagnant. Hank’s life list philosophy is particularly important to Murphy, who believes that he will die by the end of the summer. The other boys’ excitement about having new experiences allows Emerson to feel supported about stepping outside of his sheltered routine. He gradually recognizes how valuable checking things off his life list is and how much more confident he feels as he does so. Part of Hank’s philosophy of living life to the fullest also involves flirting. Inspired by Hank, Emerson gets up the courage to talk to Molly and to hold her hand. In the novel’s resolution, she gives him a kiss on the cheek for his efforts. In the novel’s climax, Emerson goes through the harrowing experience of time travel that lands him in a dangerous situation alongside his friends. His bravery and instinctual confidence in this climactic scene demonstrate his growth as a character. Emerson tells his mother at the end of camp that not truly living is worse than dying—the very thing he’s always feared. As he returns to his life at home, he no longer wants to escape the world; he wants to participate in it—a transformation undergirded by The Power of Friendship in his life.
The Power of Friendship
Emerson’s isolation has kept him from forming close friendships. When Emerson meets Hank at Camp Outlier, the two connect immediately, and Emerson admires Hank’s confidence and ability to laugh at himself—traits he sees as opposites of his own. Hank’s example encourages him that it is okay to look silly and to take risks that might seem scary or dangerous at first. By the time the group plays its first real game of capture the flag, Emerson already thinks of Hank as his best friend. This bond between them allows Emerson to trust him when Hank throws his weighted shoes into the lake, jumpstarting his character arc. Over the course of the novel, Hank continues to propel Emerson’s growth, pushing him toward greater confidence—he wakes Emerson for multiple midnight adventures, pranks and debriefs and genuinely enjoys spending time with him.
From the beginning of the story, Martin characterizes Camp Outlier as a place where kids with RISK factors can find community, connection and solidarity with other kids like them. Emerson’s bonds with the Red Maple boys are based on their shared experiences. For example, Murphy’s RISK factor—like Emerson’s--has made him an outsider in his life and left him isolated and with few friends. When Emerson and Hank learn that Murphy has learned of his future death, they insist on trying to save him despite his protests. As a result of the bond they’ve forged, they value his life and their friendship too much to accept his apathy, though they agree to keep their efforts to save him a secret. Emerson himself comes up with the plan to stick Murphy to Gary, which ends up saving his life and averting a terrible future. For Emerson, the power of friendship is significant enough to alter the course of time.
At Camp Outlier, RISK kids can form close connections without feeling alienated, creating a sense of community that helps them better understand themselves and their place in the world. The many adventures that the Red Maple boys have at camp draw them closer together, even when those adventures do not go according to plan. They look back on their initiation night fondly, and they even joke about the time that they set the lake on fire and had to clean the bathroom with toothbrushes. In the context of their shared summer, even unpleasant experiences reinforce their bond. They look out for each other—for example, helping Murphy catch up on what he has missed when he time travels. Emerson’s empathy helps him bond with Gary, even when they have conflict in their friendship. At the end of the story, all of the Red Maple boys agree to keep in touch and also agree to help Murphy return to camp the following summer, even if it costs them all of their birthday money, evidencing the bond they’ve built as a group.
