Blow

Children's Literature - Patrice Belotte

Death is snarky. His sarcasm lends itself well to his matter-of-fact way of conveying the finer points of life, and of course, death. He maintains a glass-is-half-empty type of view about the world as he fulfills the duties of his job. It is really quite simple, when your moment comes, he shows up and leads you on your way to the next chapter. He is average looking and quiet, yet incredibly noticeable when the exact moment occurs that you breathe your last breath. Nayeri's book includes four very different novellas, each centered around interesting and unique characters that push the limits of the societies in which they live. The introduction offers a brief synopsis of each story. Each novella is written to challenge the common stereotypes about the intelligence and likes, or dislikes, of female and male adolescents. "Doom with a View" is only one of the four novellas included in the collection, and the only novella, about which this review is based. Set in Europe some many centuries ago, Nayeri combines modern prose and contemporary references that leave the reader without an absolute sense of setting. Death, as the narrator, describes the complicated story of two lovers who are destined not to be together, but fall in love nonetheless. The story moves quickly. Readers travel from Italy to France, from one family's story then to the other. There is not much pause for processing all the characters that come and go, or stay and wreck havoc for the two lovers. In the end, and Nayeri is very forward about this, everyone dies—except Death himself. Reviewer: Patrice Belotte