Rhiannon+F.

=Rhiannon F.=

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

By Jonathon Safran Foer This week, I am reading __Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close__. So far, I believe this book is going to be about a boy suffering from loss.

The summary on http://www.enotes.com/extremely-loud-and-incredibly-closehas led me to make the inference that the book will contain the theme of death. It states, “Oskar's father was killed in the Twin Towers terrorist attack. Oskar's grandparents witnessed similar terrorists' attacks during World War II. The consequences of these horrid deaths have marked the psyches of the main characters in Foer's //Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close // in different, but equally painful ways.” I think this book will explain how difficult it is to deal with loss, especially for a child.

Another reason I have thought this is because of the picture on the cover. The picture on the front is a red hand, and it contains the title in it. Usually, pictures that have nothing to do with the book in the beginning are usually symbolic. I believe this hand symbolizes something sad in the book.

The last reason why I think this book is going to be about a boy suffering from death is because of the reviews of the movie that’s going to come out next year. One review says, “September 11 related drama could be heart-wrenching.”

After researching __Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close__, I am very excited to read it!

Setting: New York Time Period: Past Main Characters: 2. Mom - flat character Story Message: I think the author wrote this book to entertain with the themes of loss, growing up, and family. Plot: I noticed all these examples of events were actions that affect other people. So before you do something, remember to think before you do.
 * (pg23) "The next time I heard his voice was when I came home from school the next day. We were let out early because of what happened. I wasn't even a little bit panicky because both mom and dad worked in midtown." This was the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
 * (pg24) "There were four messages from him: one at 9:12, one at 9:31, one at 9:46, and one at 10:04."
 * 1) Oskar - round character
 * depressed (pg 107) "I miss Dad." "So do I." "Do you?" I rolled on my side, away from her." (converstation with mom)
 * frustrated (pg 105) "His spirt is there," mom said. And that made me really angry. "Dad didn't have a spirt! He had cells!"
 * outgoing (pg 15) "greetings. Gerald. I. Am. Oskar!"
 * smart(pg 31) "As for the bracelet Mom wore to the funeral, what I did was I converted Dad's last voice message into Morse Code, and I used blue beads for silence and maroon beads for breaks between letters."
 * overwhelmed (pg 108) "I was never mad at you." "What were you?" "Hurt."
 * sad (pg107) "She said, "I cry a lot, too, you know." "I don't see you cry. "Maybe that's because I don't want you to see me cry a lot."
 * (pg177) As it came out of my mouth, I was ashamed that it was mixed with any of Dad's cells that I might have inhaled when we went to Ground Zero. "If I could've chosen, I would've chosen you!"
 * Oskar sees his father’s name written in an art store (pg49). Throughout the book, Oskar looks for clues like these he things his father has left for him. Eventually, he figures out it was his grandfather who wrote it. Since the dad and grandfather have the same name, Oskar was mistaken. If this would’ve never happened in the book, Oskar would’ve been on a different journey. In my opinion, I think this happened for a reason because it gave Oskar hope.
 * This book has flashbacks, and one of the flashbacks is from Oskar’s grandma’s point of view. This part talks about when the grandma is pregnant with Oskar’s father. Oskar’s grandfather left his father when his father was a baby. I think this was very important because it showed how one person’s actions affect others and the future. If the grandfather had never left, maybe Oskar’s dad wouldn’t have died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
 * Another event that happened was Oskar never picked up the phone when his dad called while he was in the Twin Tower buildings. If Oskar had picked up the phone, maybe his dad would’ve lived. By Oskar not picking up, his father didn’t have hope during the time he died. Now Oskar regrets his decision.

My Opinion: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close was a very exciting read. I really like the end and how the author reversed time to make it so the father was still alive and happy. Time played a big part in the book. Between the time with the grandparents and Oskar’s time, I think reversing time in the end was very symbolic.