This is one controversial book- but the ending is really good :)

I have to say, so far, this is the best book of this project (will have to see what happens in the next few weeks). i thought this book was very captivating; once you found out that Frank raped the Indian girls, or that Marie died, you kept on wanting to read more... find out what happens next. I thought that, for such a new piece of literature- only about 14 years old- it is definitley going to be a classic, mainly it is because it is relateable. Even though it takes place in... guess what year? 1984!!! You're such as smarty pants!!!! Anyway, even though it takes places about 60 years ago, these issues show up today; on the news, in magazines, gossip. It shows that our clothes may change and music changes and old things are replace with new things, but issues like these stay forever, and happen all the time. Almost everything that was brought up I could say that it happens somewhere all the time.
So thats my opinion on the book. i wanted to try and focus this blog on the characters. First at bat, Wes Hayden. I could never be in the situation that he was in. i think at first he wanted to push the rape off to the side; he didn;t want to deal with it. i think, like David, Wes idolized Frank because he was his older brother and in a sense, Frank had it all. Wes didn't want to think his brother could do something like this. Also, I don't think he wanted to make this public, since they were basically celebrities in the town; he didn't want people gossiping about his family. Also, how terrible is the grandfather? STUPID FAVORITISM!!!!! To say "my son" all the time and accuse your other child of being jealous, thats terrible. And also to jsut come to the house and tell Wes that he locked Frank up for a stupid reason, to condone his mistakes?! I just felt that this scene in the book really brought Wes to a breaking point with his parents, that the ties must be severed.
Now a bat; Frank, o nasty perverted one. I could not believe that Frank committed suicide. Well, I guess everything happens for a reason. I feel that Frank may have been one of those misunderstood characters. I think he was the "good guy", but inside he had all these emotions and problems; maybe beliefs that he had to be perfect and live up to a certain expectation. And then his secret comes out. I think maybe the reason he did this was one, to relieve everyone of the situation, adn two, to releive himself. By killing himself- not the smartest idea- he would not have to live with all the shame and whispers for the rst of his life, anf maybe he relived himself of what he was going through.
Now to Mrs. Hayden (grandmother) and Gail. I see these two women as FOILS. Mrs Hayden comes across as the "female opressed by the powerful male". We can all see that the grandfather is this strong commanding man, and that she is timid and doesn't say much; she goes along with whatever he does and does it without a complaint. On the other hand, Gail is what we would say today as a modern woman; she works and takes care of her family. she's strong, and, most importantly, she doesn't want to be treated as a "delicate flower". When Wes is trying to figure out what to do, she is right there by his side, helping him make the decisons. She also expresses alot of her concerns to him too. Gail doesn't seem to appreciate when Wes tells her to leave.
i found it ironic how David believes that Frank's death would solve their problems, when it doesn't. The family is broken up, they eventually have to move away and start a new life. I felt bad that the situation was so tough that they had to moved, when all they tried to do was do the right thing. I know that in my family, the deaths brought us closer together; we were always together at someone's house, even after the funeral. It's sad that this happened because in times like these, you really need you family.