Why school bus driver Dylynn Kempton related to Craig Davidson's Precious Cargo

Precious Cargo is the story of Craig Davidson's year spent driving a school bus for special needs children. He has described the insights and empathy he gained during that time as something that forever changed him.

• Craig Davidson: My year driving a special-needs school bus

The memoir is currently a finalist onCanada Reads2018, where it will be defended by tornado hunterGreg Johnson. In anticipation of the debates,CBCBooksasked a reader with a personal connection to each of the books in contention totell us how the books impacted them.

Dylynn Kempton is a school bus driver from Thunder Bay,Ont.,who was a panellist alongside Precious Cargo authorCraig Davidson at a recent Canada Reads event. Below, she writes about why she found the story so moving and relatable.

TheCanada Readsdebates, which are being hosted byAliHassan, take place March 26-29, 2018.

Finding similarities

When I was asked to read Precious Cargo, I hadn't heard of it before. I was told it was about a guy who was so broke and desperate he decided to drive a school bus for a year. With that in mind, my first thoughts were, "That sounds like me!" and "Why would anybody write a book about that?!" I was intrigued. I'm not sure what I was expecting. Probably that this Craig Davidson guy had a really bad experience and wrote one long rant. But then I started reading.

Right away the book brought memories of my own mornings cool and crisp, dark and quiet, checking the bus. I could almost smell the morning dew as I was reading. The school bus I drive has way more students on it than Craig had on his bus. If I have a full bus, I have 68 students in the afternoon. I've been driving my route for four years now, so I know these students and I have a great group of kids. I have kids in Grade 2 for whom I'm the only bus driver they've ever had. I get to know their parents and siblings, and even grandmas and grandpas. Driving for as long as I have on this route, I can say that if I see any of my kids out in public, I have no qualms about saying hi or giving hugs. And there are a number of kids on my bus who will come up and throw their arms around me if they do see me in public.

• Why Craig Davidson's Precious Cargo resonated with parents and students in northern Ontario

Getting started

I originally started driving to be with my daughter. As a single parent, I wanted to have the time to spend with her and do stuff with her class and driving a bus enabled me to do that. My drivertraining was intimidating, but they teach you how to manage, especially the long back and "tail swing"of the bus, so your effect on other traffic is minimal. Still, the first time I got behind the wheel, I panicked. The first time they put me on the roadwith traffic I thought, "Oh my God." But now it's easy peasy.

Making space for change

I currently have one boy on my bus with autism. He's been on my bus for four years. From the first day to today, the dynamic has completely changed. He used to only sit with his older brother. He didn't like to be around certain kids because of the noise. He didn't like the speakers, so I wouldn't put him near the radio. I believe it was last year that he first asked me if he could sit somewhere else. I responded, "Absolutely. You sit where you want to sit." He sat with a couple of boys from his class. From then on, he sat away from his brother, but with his brother close by. Now his brother has graduated to a new school and this year he's been completely on his own.

• 3 lessons Canada Reads finalist Craig Davidson learned by being a bus driver

I'm still checking in with him to make sure things are okay. I still make sure he's not near the speakers and check to make sure that whatever's going on around him isn't agitating him. Because I've known him for four years I can see if it's starting to get there. But he's in a very different place, and it was his own independence that got him there. He came up and asked to move. When he got off the bus that day, his teacher said, "Oh, you're not with your brother?" And he said, "No, he's back there. I sat with my friends." And he had this big smile on his face.

Making time to listen

I can see the characters in Craig's book the students on his bus reflected in the students on my bus. Not necessarily their abilities or disabilities, but their personalities. Every day is different. You can't anticipate what's going to happen on the bus. You can't anticipate who's going to be the clown, or who might put somebody down. But Craig's book opened my eyes to the fact that despite their differences, kids are all the same. The stories they tell, the words that come out of their mouths, are all the same. Someone just needs to stop and listen.

• 3 books that influenced Canada Reads panellist Greg Johnson

TheCanada Reads2018 contenders:

Mozhdah Jamalzadah, defendingThe Boat PeoplebySharon Bala
Tahmoh Penikett, defendingAmerican WarbyOmar El Akkad
Greg Johnson, defendingPrecious CargobyCraig Davidson
Jeanne Beker, defendingForgivenessbyMark Sakamoto
Jully Black, defendingThe Marrow ThievesbyCherie Dimaline