The Fall By Colleen Nelson
A Novel
Characters
Ben Olnuik is the main character in the story "The Fall". Throughout the story Ben is a very kind and caring boy however he is very shy and also insecure . By the end of the story he is able to break out of his shell and become more outgoing.
Luke is one of Ben's closest friends in the story. He is very fun caring and outgoing but he does bad things when challenged by his brother.
Taz is Lukes brother and is a friend of Ben's. He is a former football player for the high school but was kicked of due to an altercation with his father and his coach. Since he was kicked off the football team he has become best friends with Cory. He is known to be a troublemaker and is selfish.
Cory is the best friend of Taz and throughout the story he was never really close to Ben. He's a troubled child whose father had recently passed away . Since his fathers death he has become more arrogant and selfish.
Setting
The book "The Fall" takes place in Toronto and the places where most of the story happens is at the local rundown skate park
Skate Park
• Many important components of the story happen here
• In the story the skate park is described as being very rundown and filled with broken beer bottles and ciggarets
• Over the eight day period where the story takes place Ben is here almost everyday
• This is one of the places where Ben first encounters Luke Cory and Taz
In the story whenever Ben needs to be by himself and keep his mind of things he comes to this skate park
Plot
Ben is described at the beginning of the story as being an insecure boy whose parents where recently divorced.His only goal and aspirations in life were to become a professional skate boarder.Throughout his high school years his best and only friend was Tessa. However later on in the story Ben meets Taz, Luke and Cory. Three kids that are always misbehaving and causing trouble. Slowly Ben starts to distance himself from Tessa and starts hanging out with Luke, Taz and Cory more. One night the four boys decided to climb a construction site. While climbing Luke had fallen off a beam and died. This had shocked Ben, Taz and Cory and had cause them to distance themselves from each other. Each reacted in three different ways to the death. Cory blamed the death on Ben and joined a gang. Ben was isolated and depressed. He often thought about suicide. Taz dealt with Luke's death by drinking excessive amounts of alcohol. In the end Ben had overcome his fears and had stood up to Cory . He eventually ended the lies over Luke's death.
Theme
Movie- The Outsiders
The story takes place in rural Oklahoma and is about a 14 year old boy named Pony boy Curtis who is struggling to find his way in society. He has two brothers named Daryl and Soda Pop who are part of a gang called the Greasers. There are 4 other boys in the greasers Dallas Winston, Johnny Cade, Two-Bit Matthews and Steve Randle. The main plot of the story is about the fight between the poor north zone gang the Greasers and the rich south zone gang the Socs. After returning one night from a movie Pony boy and Johnny were jumped by a group of Socs. In an attempt to defend himself Johnny stabbed and killed a Soc. After this incident Johnny and Pony fled the city and found a hideout in a near by town. After about a week of hiding Pony and Johnny decide to head back to the city. On their return home they saw a burning church filled with children. Johnny and Pony Boy were able to save the children, however, Johnny suffered burns and a broken back . He was rushed to the hospital. At the same time the Socs and Greasers decided to rumble to find out who was the better gang. The Greasers won the battle but Johnny ended up passing away in the hospital due to his injuries. When Dallas heard of Johnny's death Dallas robbed a store and was later shot down by police. Although the greasers may have won the battle they had lost important people along the way.
Website-colleennelson. com
- Colleen gives the reader some insight on her career and what she has accomplished so far as an author.
- She also talks about her books The Fall and Tori by Design
- She talks about why she has written these books and what they mean to her
- For example in the Fall she talks about writing the book because of an experience she had in the past as a teacher when one of her students passed a away.
Overview
In my opinion the theme for the book "The Fall" is about the reactions of a person when a loved one dies. The 3 boys Ben Cory and Taz react differently towards Lukes death. Ben becomes depressed, Cory joins a gang and Taz becomes an alcoholic. In today's society the same can be said, people react differently when a person that they love dies. For example it is common for people to become depressed after a death. Some people are able to move on and allow themselves to escape that state while others may take more time to get out of it. It depends on the person. This theme connects to the movie The Outsiders and to the website colleennelson.com because in both the website and the movie they talk about he death of a loved one and there reactions towards it. In the movie the Outsiders Pony boy and Dallas react differently when hearing that Johnny had died. Pony boy reacts by mourning with his family while Dallas performs robberies and criminal acts around the city. In the website colleen nelson.com talks about the sadness she felt over the death of one of her students. Wether it be in society literature or media everyone reacts differently when they lose someone that they love. Through these 3 representations I think that they all relate to the theme of a person's reaction when losing someone that they loved and cared for.
Literary Value and Questions
1. Does the Source Merely Entertain?
In my opinion I found that the story was very interesting as well as entertaining. There many parts in the story that kept me on the edge of my seat. However I do believe that some readers may get confused by the story due to the character perspective change throughout the story.
2.Does the source Entertain as well as provide helpful information?
Yes I believe that it provides me with helpful information. Being that the story is based on a teenager I can relate with many things that happen in the story. It also provides me with information of what choices I should and should not make throughout my high school years.
3. Does the source provide a new insight and perspective?
Yes this story does insight me on a new perspective. It insights me on the perspective of how a teenager going through difficult things in school as well as in his or her family life is able to cope with there emotions and get through high school.
In conclusion I would definitely recommend this book due to that fact that it is very exciting and very insightful on a teenagers perspective throughout high school.