From: Nina Lindsay <nlindsay>
Date: Sat, 16 Sep 1995 11:32:00 -600

Responding to Robin's comments about being frustrated with the ending of Scorpions -- having discussed this book in a large class setting, I know that there are many different responses to the ending scene of this book. For some -- like me -- that last image of Jamal turning up his collar to the wind is so powerful -- his character is built up so well throughout the book and seems to solidify in this moment, so that, however horrible the world around him seems, you feel he has become himself, you like this self, and you feel confident that he can operate as a strong, critical, and caring individual. That is, his life takes off--- for me, what a terrific ending!

Adversely, I was disappointed in the ending of Fallen Angels, although I think the feeling I was left with may have been exactly what was intended. With so much intriguing insight and development in Perry's character throughout the story, I felt his tangle of emotions was never resolved. In fact, I felt his character slowly going numb, as though he was giving up ever sorting out the tangle. This may be what the book meant to tell -- how incomprehensible and irreconcilable war (specifically Vietnam) can be. But I was hoping for the emergence of a unified character, as I had gotten in Scorpions. I felt, towards the end of Fallen Angels, the author moving away from the heart of matters to the surface horror -- Judy is dead, he's leaving some of the most important relationships he's ever had (with his friends), he's going home but what is he going to do with his life--- I didn't feel, when he got on the plane, that he was at all as close to being prepared for life as Jamal was.

Nina Lindsay Student--School of Library & Info. Studies UW Madison nlindsay at mail.soemadison.wisc.edu
Received on Sat 16 Sep 1995 12:32:00 PM CDT