So far the narrator has introduced many characters and touched on many different stories from different times in his life. Immediately, Hemon introduces two stories that most likely come together in the end and he already makes hints that, in fact, they do. At the beginning, the narrator speaks of a sketchy situation that took place when a "grimy" man came to the chief's house to bring a letter and was then shot and killed. Ultimately, I thought that this situation was what the entire story would be about but it was in fact just a short snippet to the narrator's entire purpose of the story. The "grimy" man was a Jewish immigrant from Eastern Europe and came here before the war broke out. He then went on to talk about his Bosnian background and his wife, who is a native-neurosurgeon. Also, the benefits he has by being an American and Bosnian citizen and the differences between their country and ours. The narrator, also talks about how he wants to write a novel and that is where the Jewish immigrant ties into the story. The Jewish immigrant was shot by the police chief in Chicago when trying to give him a note. The entire story thus far seems very political, with references to George W Bush, blaming him for the whole war. It also ties in a lot of religion, the narrator himself admits he is not religious but also poses to be a Christian tour guide in the city, contradicting his views and beliefs. Throughout the middle of the reading he stumbles upon an old friend from high school, Rora. Rora is an extremely strong and influential character and I see him as staying strong and influential throughout the entire story. Rora and the narrator pair up and while Rora takes pictures, the narrator writes and the two become a very dynamic pair. Another short story is introduced within the novel, which will most definitely play a role in the future of the narrator's novel and dynamic of the book. Obviously the major themes are politics and religion and Sujo and Mujo live out these themes to their fullest extent. Sujo comes to America for more opportunity under Mujo's advice but does many questionable things once he gets here.
"The world is always greater than your desires; plenty is never enough."
"It was never in my nature to take a straight path anywhere..."
"The empty streets crawling between the dark buildings; the carriages pulling through thick sheets of rain and deep puddles; the disoriented, freezing drunks and the late-shift workers- all are flashed into brief existence by a thunderbolt."
wieldy: easily handled, used, or managed
I chose these three quotes because their amount of detail. He writes this novel in so much detail it makes me, the reader, believe I was actually there and paints a perfect picture in my mind. It also shows the "deepness" of this novel; I like this book so far because of the realness is presents and the fact that there are so many relatable topics to this day and age. It is crazy to think that the things we struggle with in today's society are the same exact things that they struggled with back then. So far, this story has grasped my interest and the story line makes me want to keep reading! I can't wait to see what the narrator and Rora discover in their searches to find out what really happened to Lazarus. Also, to see how religion and politics play into the story since they are very strong themes.
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