I've had several students come to me after enjoying "Train I Ride," and after blurting out the reasons they loved the book, often come back to "But we never find out her real name." I help guide them to the point where they see that it really doesn't matter because that's not the point of the story, not something Rydr feels is necessary to share, and isn't who she really is. Thoughts?

Paul Mosier Hello Mr. P! As I wrote the story, i wondered about her name, too. She’s unreliable, and reluctant to tell us the truth about her uncomfortable circumstances. She’s ready to leave her past behind, even if her future doesn’t look rosy. Dorothea finally reveals it on page 173, (of the hardcover) when a term of endearment she has been using is capitalized when not at the beginning of a sentence. I finally decided this is her actual name, and I had to make sure my editor and the line editors didn’t “fix” it by removing the capitalization But I think you are right that what is important is who she chooses to be going forward, what she calls herself, and the newly discovered ability to build a family of her own choosing. Thank you for reading! And I love to do classroom Skype visits, for which I do not charge!

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