Hufflepuffs are particularly good finders.

8. The final plot twist comes in the last two sentences of the story. here the narrator speaks directly to the reader, giving us information the characters don't know. How is this an appropriate conclusion to the story? What final statement does Wolff seem to be making here about his characters?

This is an appropriate conclusion to the story because it confirms what the reader probably already suspects. Although Frank and Kenny and Tub may seem to have changed, their respective epiphanies do not make them dynamic characters. Wolff seems to be telling the reader, "Don't worry. They are all still bumbling idiots. They just feel a lot more content about it now."

I really shouldn't say that about them, as I get lost nearly every time I endeavor to find a new place, but I know I'm a bumbling idiot when it comes to that, so it's okay. Not very Hufflepuff-ish at all. Therefore, what I draw from this story is as follows:

• Frank, Kenny and Tub will use their newfound insights into themselves to make an even greater mess of their lives than they have already made.
• If a friend points a gun at you, don't shoot. Just duck or something.
• Frank and Tub are definitely not Hufflepuffs.

In The End

In the end, we come full circle. There's more Brett, more anti-Semitism, and more sunburnt hair.

Also, "Life was so simple in France," is a quote of Jake's that I'd like to contest. He begins by saying he mistrusts frank and simple people, by which I concluded that he mistrusts simplicity, and therefore his feeling foolish for leaving France's simplicity in favor of unpredictable Spain puzzled me. It tempts me to call him a dynamic character.

Then, I remember that in the end, he's still following Brett around like a lost puppy. Jake must be a static character.

Although Jake seems like an idiot to me for remaining so loyal to the fickle Brett, the last words of the novel seem to imply that he recognizes his foolishness and is helpless against it. "Yes, isn't it pretty to think so?" He seems to live with an insatiable optimism about his situation with Brett, but the optimism is not blind.

Also, when I finally titled this post, it reminded me of this song, and I realized the song really does relate to the book.