Flipping Fantastic: The Mother

Those who read Jane Langford's ,"Flipping Fantastic" will certainly be enamoured by Tristan's positivism and concerned about James' introvert nature.

Let us look at the character of their mother and how she influences both of her sons.

She is not a major character in the story but she is instrumental in providing relevant information so that we can understand the twins better.

Tristan tells us that his mother is strong and determined. His statement,"...that's mum for you,very determined" attest to this fact.

She is positive minded and very optimistic. She would not want Tristan to think lowly of his disability. She wants Tristan to be brave and have a positive outlook in life despite his physical shortcomings. This can be gathered from the words," I 'm only interested in what you can do."

She is a loving and caring parent and loves both her sons very much. She knows that James was shy,nervous and lack confidence but she does not say anything about it. She uses positive words to encourage him. When James did fumble his only line , she chooses to see James' bravery on stage and eggs him on by saying that he did wonderfully on stage. Even if she senses his stuttering, she will be the last person to comment on it negatively.

She is observant and understanding. During the summer holidays, she could observe the unhappiness of both of her boys. James is normally quiet by nature but not Tristan. That both were, worries her. She felt that she could have made a wrong decision by sending them to different schools.

When things turns out alright in he end, she knew she had made the right decision. From her action and decision,Tristan s to be independent and so did James.

In conclusion we can say that the twin's mother is practical and realistic and she knew the moment of truth for the two boys had arrived when they moved on to secondary school education. It was a hard milestone decision but her wisdom ruled the day!