Review of Paperboy by Vince Vawter Reflections

Reflections: Review of Paperboy by Vince Vawter

Description

Vince Vawter’s Paperboy is a young adult fiction targeting readers aged ten years and above. It is the author’s first and only novel, published in 2013. Paperboy is a 1959 film set in Memphis, Tennessee, and follows the story of Victor, an eleven-year-old boy nicknamed “Little Man,” whose world is turned upside down when he takes up a friend’s paper route. Paperboy’s autobiographical element, according to Vawter, makes it “nearly a memoir.” Almost all of the characters in the book were based on real-life personalities from Vawter’s youth, and the author, like his protagonist, struggled with a speech impediment and worked a paper route for a month.

Analysis

In this narration, Victor is telling the truth as he can’t tell the story anywhere else because Mam has made him vow to keep the contents of his confrontation with Ara T a secret. Because Victor wants the reader to understand what he’s going through, the tone of Paperboy is brutally honest—and by delivering his narrative in such a plain, realistic manner, he comes across as a trustworthy narrator. He keeps nothing hidden from the reader... or from himself.

Victor recounts events in proper chronological order, with numerous details and observations. When he talks about how he perceives Mrs. Worthington, for example, he also mentions that he senses she isn’t fully happy:

Mrs. Worthington didn’t have to say much for me to tell what kind of day she was having. I had already seen her empty eyes. Her happy eyes. Her whiskey eyes. I had just seen her empty eyes. (7.10)

Victor’s writing style reflects his nature, which is cautious and thoughtful. That’s the type of kid he is; therefore, it’s only natural that he writes in the same manner. It’s also worth noting that the text is devoid of commas. Victor doesn’t want any extra gaps in the text because writing his tale allows him to communicate without the barrier of his stutter. He has had enough of them when he opens his mouth and now is his chance to speak without them.

At the end of the narration, Victor stands up in class at the end of Paperboy and gives his name and some facts about himself. I mean, what’s the big deal? Reconsider your position. Something like this would have made him puke or pass out at the story’s start. Victor has always attempted to hide his stutter and feels self-conscious, but throughout the summer, he grows up enough to realize that he is more than his stammer and has a lot to contribute. It takes a lot of guts for him to step up and introduce himself to the class, and it demonstrates that he’s ready to face the world, stammer and all.

Sociological reflection

Parents should be aware that Paperboy, a book set in the segregated South of the United States, has situations and attitudes characteristic of the period and requires some maturity from the reader. A mother’s friend protests about a plan to integrate the schools, and the narrator’s African-American nanny is forced to ride in the back of the bus unless she is with him. There is violence in the story and questionable behavior: The narrator spots a woman with a black eye on his route and overhears an unpleasant argument with her husband; he also breaks into a man’s house and knocks him down when he returns. His nanny had been abused. A character fantasizes about hurling a rock at a bully before throwing a bottle at a man choking a woman. A woman confesses to the murder of her brother over a bag of sugar. When a youngster discovers that his father is not listed on his birth certificate, he becomes curious about his unknown parent. Adult characters consume booze and cigarettes; one is an alcoholic, while the other chews tobacco.