The Island on Bird Street
Uri Orlev
Summary
Facts
Recommendation
Alex
An 11 year old Jewish boy named Alex is the main character in the novel, The Island on Bird Street. Throughout the book Alex talks about things his father had taught him, and from the stories Alex told about his father the reader can easily tell that Alex really admired his Dad. A quote that could support Alex's admiration for his father would be, " After the first time, we sat on the floor night after night while I practiced assembling and disassembling the pistol. Father showed me one thing after another" (Orlev 3). A second quote from the story that could describe Alex would be, "Sometimes, when I was alone in the hideout, I'd think about what it would be like to be someone on whom others' lives depended" (Orlev 16). This quote can support that Alex was always thinking of other people. There are many quotes throughout the book that show that Alex was a very thoughtful person. Alex did not only think of people but also his pet mouse, snow who had been left at home during the selection. To me Alex was a very brave young boy, there are events that happen in the book that should never happen to an 11 year old, and for Alex to go through those events makes him very brave. On page 99 Alex says, "I showed them the pistol and stuck it quickly back into my pocket before they could get any ideas about it" (Orlev 99).