While reading pages 105-170 of Zeitoun, I was left wondering why there are so many flashbacks. I feel as these flashbacks take away from the story. I think they are hard to read and don’t enhance the story at all. I thought that the flashback about the captain and the stars was especially distracting. It was brought up many times in class, but the story continues to have many flashbacks. The flashback that Kathy has about Zeitoun’s family in Syria had very little to do with the story, I felt, because while Kathy was considering moving to Arizona with Yuko, the flashback may have been an attempt to hint at moving to Syria but it was very vague.
I think that the flashbacks Zeitoun has about his brother bringing him to New Orleans should have been maybe in the beginning of the book where the reader learns about Zeitoun in the first place. Basically, the flashbacks seem to be at inopportune times, and could have been put somewhere else.
I also was confused as to why Nasser would say that the men were wondering if they needed water. Could he not see that the men were armed? I find it hard to think that Nasser would be a part of this group, but how can a man miss guns on many men. Maybe it was the other man who was in the house? Also, the men knew that there was looting going on, why were they not as active to prevent it? Maybe they should have stuck together more instead of separating, and found some way to defend themselves. I find it unfortunate that the looters decided to pick Zeitoun who was only trying to help people, and I hope reading the story will show that the men are safe, but they must have known that sticking around would hae led to such a situation.
I know that these are two difficulties, where as I should have probably focused on one. Hopefully both will be resolved during the rest of the book.
Richard
4 years ago
Miyuki,
ReplyDeleteI get where you are coming from with the flashbacks, sometimes I felt like they were there just to elongate the story but then I thought about it and they totally are! Haha. If you cut out all of the flashbacks this book would be like 100 pages long and no one would care about. or if he put it at the beginning people might be confused where this book was going and how it was supposed to be about Hurricane Katrina. I think the authors only choice to use all the information and still keep the attention of the reader was to add it in snidbits through the whole thing. I like them though, I think they are interesting and explain a lot about who Zeitoun is as a person and why he is the way he is.