Answer:
Genre
: Fiction/Coming-of-age
Setting and Context
: Florida, mid-1990's
Narrator and Point of View
: First-person narration by Paul Fisher.
Tone and Mood
: Observant; smart; wry; honest.
Protagonist and Antagonist
: Protagonist: Paul Fisher. Antagonist: Erik Fisher.
Major Conflict
: Paul Fisher must overcome his fears of his older brother while learning to confront the lies and subtle manipulations of his family.
Climax
: Paul remembers what happened to him when he was a kid, when Erik pinned him down and sprayed paint into his eyes. Paul confronts his parents about the reason they never told him what happened. They tell him that they didn't want him to hate his brother. In response, he asks them if they wanted him to hate himself instead.
Foreshadowing
: Paul's struggle with his family is foreshadowed in the preface of the novel when he has a mysterious flashback. He remembers Erik swinging a baseball bat at his head and missing. He remembers running to his parents and telling them about it, but his parents deny that Erik would ever do something like that.
Imagery
: The novel is filled with rich imagery, from the landscape of tangerine groves to the prefab school portables and the sterile landscape of the housing development.
Hope this helped!
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