The first character that is introduced in the book is a young boy named Jack Gantos (1). He is a skinny, 12 year old boy who was brought up in a poor home. He lives with both of his parents and his father dreams of getting out of Norvelt, which he believes is dying(52). The second main character is Miss Volker, who writes the obituaries for the local newspaper and had Jack type them up, because of her old age(5). Jack spends his time running errands for her as an excuse to get out of his room for the summer. The story line is based around the deaths of the original Norvelters and how the old houses that were originally built there are now being shipped away and sold to other more prosperous cities with growing populations. Jack gets to see both remorse for the actions through Mrs. Volker and why it should happen through his father(198). The entire story isn't depressing and serious, as Jack makes many mistakes along his way and brings dry humor into the subject of death. Although it's a rather boring storyline, many small adventures and excursions are told throughout the entire story, brining excitement and uniqueness to the plot.
Important themes and symbols: The obituary
Throughout the book, one reoccurring thing appeared over and over. That thing, was the obituaries written by Jack, who typed them up for Mrs. Volker, because her hands had terrible arthritis(27). In the book, not only did they signify the dead and end of the people surrounded Jack, but the history behind what had happened. The obituaries make the connection to the different people and even animals sometimes, more personal and relatable to the reader. They symbolized the slow, yet prominent ending of Norvelt. "Writing orbits (obituaries) allows me to write things that people wouldn't normally read around here." (32) That is what Mrs. Volker can be found quoting in the book. Unlike many of the other people living in the town of Norvelt, Mrs. Volker wanted to see the town continue to prosper, and she was very adamant about her ideas. She managed to weave the similarities between the original Norvelters and the dying town in the Obituaries throughout the entirety of the story. Another thing that she added in the paper, were historical events in history, which were in the same section of the newspaper. This made the connection between places and events more close to the death of the people that everyone knew.