Painful Details in JL

Some of the situations in this novel are so difficult for me to imagine surviving, but Julia Scheeres does such an unbelievable job placing us in these awful places by using vivid detail and description. This passage was especially easy to imagine:

"'My brother, but he's not really my brother', is all I can say before a loud buzzing fills my ears. The noise is new since I entered The Program, and it happens during stressful situations, like during 2a.m. sessions or when I see staff shoving students around. Sometimes the sound is like a waterfall and other times it's like a thousand tiny bells ringing, but mostly it's a bussing, as if a wasp were crawling inside my head. It prevents me from thinking too hard about whatever is happening, and in that way, the noise is soothing" (263).

Julia is using the methods of similie and metaphor to describe this sound. When she is describing it, it is so easy to imagine this sound. She is using sensory imagery and playing up the sense of sound as well. The way she writes this passage speaks to the senses in a way that is emotional, she shows us that she is mentally shutting down without actually telling us.

This whole novel was a great demonstration of what a memoir should be like, and I feel like it presented a good example for me when it came time to write my first draft! I cannot wait to hear her speak in person!
~Kari