History is relevant, personal, and alive.

The entire book is based on the main theme that history is relecant, personal, and alive. From the first day of class, Deja's teachers work together to teach them about the terror attacks on 9/11. The teachers try to relate the events so students will see that history is relevant, personal, and alive. Deja struggles with this concept. She has a hard time understanding how 9/11, which caused so many deaths, can still be alive. Ultimately, Deja sees that history is relevant, personal, and alive, not just for her but for her friends Ben and Sabeen, too.

History is relevant for Deja because her Pop was there. It is personal because it affected his mental, emotional, and physical health which, in turn, affects her life. It is alive now that Pop has told her his story and continues to talk about the experience...