What is the theme in Missing May by Cynthia Rylant?

The first theme in the novel is the surreal nature of the afterlife. The reader first recognizes the surreal nature during May's first visit. During this visit, Ob's ears perk up like a dog's and he sniffs the air, positive May is with them. For all Ob's confidence, Summer isn't so sure. This tension between belief and disbelief is at the center of the surreal nature of the afterlife. Chapter Four opens with the eerie image of the baby seeming to hover in the air, adding another dimension to the theme of ghosts and the afterlife. The symbolism of the baby in the chair is that it's simply an illusion, but it's clear, there's a veil between the two worlds - this world and the next - but they are seemingly intertwined.