comment on language / style

The plot of the story is fairly simple but the subplots and the presentation are convoluted to the point that readers may have trouble keeping track of the events and people involved. There is a great deal of imagery and many aspects of the story are left to the interpretation of the reader. For example, all the women who had lived at the Convent make appearances to their loved ones after the shooting but it seems evident that they weren't really there. The reader is left to determine the significance of both the women's appearances and the people to whom they appear. There are not many difficult words but the words used are presented in a manner that some readers may have difficulty following. There are some curse words in the book and some references to sexual encounters. There are also some dated references to blacks, specifically the word "Negro" and others that are slang. The book was written in 1999 and the use of these words, at least to some degree, is a product of the period. Other uses are an effort to make the story seem realistic to the time and physical setting.