small+crimes

Week 1: Jim Horvath-Job A Julian Sison-Job B Mike Niego-Job C Joe Satkowski-Job D

B: The main character of __Small Crimes__ is a man named Joe Denton who was recently released from prison early and returns home on parole. His crime was disturbing, as he was in jail for stabbing the district attorney thirteen times in the face (with a handle off a file cabinet, so the district attorney is still alive) while secretly looking through police files. He had stolen eighty thousand dollars and tried to destroy the evidence by lighting the district attorney's office on fire. Joe is an ex-coke addict and gambler, and had lost all his money because of gambling. His wife divorced him after the stabbing and he had not seen his kids since. Joe is quite interesting because of his eventful history. His twisted, violent actions, ironically, are what draws me to the book, and it interests me, such as __No Country for Old Men__ did, because of the intense and constant action. Joe is now reformed (or at least it appears so to the reader), and currently is in yet another struggle since he was almost framed for rape and now must move out of the town he grew up in, to Albany, to talk to his ex-wife about his kids. There are some characters I cannot stand, namely his parents, who have treated himself with total disrespect, (since he was released) talking behind his back. Although it may be reasonable to act so cruel to him after his imprisonment, I still find it difficult to understand how his parents treat him so badly, as he is their child after all. Overall, __Small Crimes__ has proven itself very interesting within the first few chapters, and I already feel immersed in the amazing plot, and I am sure that conditions will only improve.

C: During our first book club meeting of the second marking period, we began by eating Jim's snacks and drinks. After eating, we moved straight into the questions Joe had prepared the night before. We used them to successfully start a discussion, mainly based on Joe Denton's future, and whether we believed he would return to jail for more crimes or if he would begin to stay by the law and move into a better life. We decided together that, since Joe had had seven years in prison to ponder about the happenings in his life, that he would have a good chance at becoming a moral person and turning his completely immoral life around. We did also agree that he did take many risks and fall into many dangerous behaviors, first of all gambling, which had put his whole family into a great deal of debt and also that his involvement with the mob tore him away from the people he loved most. These behaviors all led to a painful and miserable life for Joe Denton.

Moving on to our other discussed topics, we focused the rest of the period on the topic of his family life, his life not including his job or his "small crimes", as the book is titled. We stated that Joe Denton's crooked behaviors outside the home were also present inside the home as well. In one chapter of the book, Joe remembered a moment in his life where he went as far to put a gun to his daughter's head (he claimed that he would never have hurt his daughters or his wife, he was just so messed up with the cocaine and the alcohol, it caused him to go through with this action) and this horrified us. This section without a doubt was the most debated scene for all of us. Throughout this fifth of the book, we had been trying to believe that, at heart, Joe was a truly good person trying to make up for his past mistakes, but this one action made it difficult for us to forgive him, however, with more reading of __Small Crimes__, our book club group should be able to judge what kind of a person Joe Denton really is.

D: 1. What vices of Joe describe his personality?

Joe, though a married man, had gone every night to strip clubs and was also a cocaine addict. Joe spent most of his free time either in bars or gambling, burying himself in his own debts, and, as stated in this segment of the story by Joe's ex-wife, he is known for "taking the easy way out".

2. Being that Joe is such a sick individual, do you think that stabbing someone illustrates how he feels, or do you think it was warranted at all?

In some ways, we think that the crime may be justified because he is attempting to make up for it. Also, Joe was a cocaine addict, so this greatly influenced the way that he acted.

3. Is Joe an anti-hero, or a hero with some major flaws?

Joe is the protagonist in the story, but he is not truly a hero or an anti-hero yet. It is hard to determine whether or not Joe will change at all during the course of the story, but if he is able to then he has the ability to become a hero.

4. What does the book so far describe about his character?

The book ironically presents Joe as a character willing to reconcile for his past mistakes. He tries to find solutions to all the problems he has created for himself, and claims that, in his seven years spent in jail, he has spent plenty of time thinking about how he would spend his post-prison life.

5. Do you think that Joe will change at all during the course of the book or more towards the end of the book?

We believe that Joe shows an ability to change positively, but his involvement with gambling, the mob, and cocaine make it all too easy for him to slip into the depths of depression again, leaving us with questions as to what will occur in the future. We together as a group agreed that we hope that Joe will follow through and change to help others and himself.

Week 2: Mike Niego-Job A Joe Satkowski-Job B Jim Horvath-Job C Julian Sison-Job D

B: __Small Crimes__ uses fairly simplistic terms to describe each event that occurs throughout the story. The book moves very quickly and therefore is a fairly easy read, though it does involve the reader in such a way that allows the reader to constantly contemplate the next action and the next occurrence, which also helps keep the plot interesting. The book is approximately half conversational and half narrative, with the main character Joe Denton mainly conversing with members of the mob and the previous mob leader, Manny Vassey, who is now hospitalized. The vocabulary is not completely simple, yet it is not a "classic" novel and therefore does not utilize too many old terms or extremely challenging vocabulary. I think this book is written at a grade level for teenagers and older adults who prefer the high intensity of action novels that our group tends to read. This //noir// genre is not focused as much on the vocabulary and the words on the page as much as it is involved with each individual's actions and the motives behind each action. However, language is still quite a significant aspect of __Small Crimes__; though at times it may use some strong language and other terms not necessarily appropriate for younger children, this language helps further exemplify the severity of certain events during the book. Furthermore, the language can be used to help describe a specific character's tone or mood, and therefore assist the reader while going through the book. __Small Crimes__, though similar in genre to our previous read, __No Country for Old Men__, creates a completely unique plot and a suspenseful atmosphere for the reader.

C: After finishing the snacks Mike had brought in for this week, we initiated our discussion in a different way we usually did. First, we began by discussing what exactly had happened throughout the section we had read for this week. After summarizing the plot, we moved on to discuss our reactions to this one part of the book. We felt that Joe is faced with a constant stream of troubles that continue to interrupt his daily life. These problems only continue to escalate, and it seems like Joe's return to jail is inevitable. So far throughout the book, there have been several threats to Joe's life; so many people want him dead, which only adds to the suspense of the novel. We agreed that as we progressed through the book, life would become gradually worse for Joe Denton, and the plot is so descriptive and convincing that it almost appears that the story is real. The actions, characters, and personalities of the novel are so believable and Dave Zeltserman uses such vivid descriptions of each event that occurs that we imagine these events happening.

Afterward, we moved on to the questions. We discussed the questions, a few of them related to Joe's behavior and his next move. We believed that he would move from Bradley, seeing how that would be the most logical decision for Joe to make. Many have suggested that Joe drive far away to a place where his face is not recognized, and it seemed like Joe really enjoyed the idea, however, Joe still shows purpose for living in Bradley, as so far he appears to want to face all his problems instead of run away from them. The plot is thrilling and always is full of action, so the reader is never uninterested in the plot. While it may not be as violent and more based on shooting like __No Country for Old Men__, it provides intensity in the form of dilemmas, putting Joe Denton right in the middle of life or death situations that draw the reader in.

D: 1. Has Joe Denton's behavior changed at all during this section? How?

No, because Joe Denton has acted in a similar manner since he was let out of jail. Joe Denton has been trying to make a living for himself, which he is having trouble doing, as he has much opposition.

2. Do you think Joe will decide to leave Bradley, New York? If so, where do you think he will go?

Yes, and we believe that Joe is planning on moving south, as he has previously mentioned wishing that he could be walking along the shores of the beach in Florida.

3. What do you think is the biggest problem currently facing Joe?

We agreed that Joe's biggest problem is probably the dilemma facing him concerning Dan Pleasant, another officer in the police force Joe was in. Dan Pleasant, however, is the same type of person as Joe, involved with the mob, and Dan has told Joe that he must kill one of two people involved with the plot who have information that could send them both to jail. Dan Pleasant says that if Joe fails to accomplish this task, he will kill them both personally, then finish off Joe.

4. Do you think that Joe ever see his daughters again?

We think that later on, Joe might have a chance to talk to his daughters, or maybe even gain custody of the kids and be able to see them on a weekly basis; however, the possibilities of these happening are very small.

5. Do you think Joe has any "close friends", as asked of him throughout this section? Who?

No, as Joe had mentioned throughout the book, the only people who were close to him were his wife and his daughters, as he was so busy throughout his life that he never had time to spend with other people.

Week 3: Joe Satkowski-Job A Jim Horvath-Job B Julian Sison-Job C Mike Niego-Job D

B: The overall tone of this book is serious, while the mood is a gloomy, almost depressed feeling. The overall genre is described as //noir//, which is exactly how the book is written. Violence plays a major part of this book, as it is an action genre. The overall emotion of the book is mysterious and confusing, as the confusion is used effectively as a way to create suspense for the reader. Certain examples of this mood can be found with one major antagonist of the book, the son of a mafia leader, named Manny Vassey Junior (simply called "Junior" by Joe Denton). Junior has an overall horrifying personality, as he enjoys disfiguring people's bodies and other disgusting, violent actions. He is feared by most of the people living in the town of Bradley, where Joe lives. He adds to the confusion, as he only sometimes appears in person throughout the book, and tends to remain hidden in the shadows, plotting against people throughout the remainder of the book. The overall tone is more serious, with Joe Denton as a contradiction to this overall tone, as Joe Denton is clever and tends to talk back to most of the characters throughout the novel (mainly those on the police force who currently hate and want to kill Joe). Joe Denton, however, knows his current situation and is currently plotting an escape plan, or trying to find "the easy way out", as his ex-wife had stated earlier on in the book.

C: We started the book club after eating the food Joe had brought in for us, and then discussed the events that had occurred thus far in the book. We discussed how Joe Denton's problem had greatly escalated, because initially, he had been facing a dilemma whose consequences were more distant, but now, his problems have caught up to him and he realizes he cannot push his problems off any longer. Joe Denton knows that he must immediately deal with his problems, but it is intensely difficult for him because almost any action he performs at the current moment would lead to death or jail. This depressing fact is taking its toll on Joe, and he even had to stop at the side of the road to take a breath and then nearly blacked out. The pressure of all these events is proving too much tor Joe Denton, and the fact that there is no one for him (because most people in his town of Bradley want him dead) makes it even more difficult for him as he is all alone.

After discussing the events of this section, we moved on to discuss the possible solutions of the problems facing Joe Denton and what we thought would come of it. We imagined one of the possible solutions being him convincing the nurse Charlotte Boyd, who he is dating, to overdose Manny Vassey with morphine to put him in respiratory failure and end his life early. He had been previously planning this, and Charlottes Boyd had overdosed four people in her previous job in Canada, so it would definitely be a possible solution, although Charlotte, having moved to America, had wanted to leave her past behind and was reluctant to go through with this plan. The other possible solution we thought of to end the current problem with Dan Pleasant would be to kill Phil Coakley, the District Attorney who Joe Denton had stabbed thirteen times in the face, however, we are not sure how that would be possible. __Small Crimes__ is now becoming even more intense since the problems are all surrounding Joe, with no easy way out.

D: 1. What do you think most influences the tone of the book?

We think that it is the characters who provide most of the suspense and horror to the book, especially those involved with the mafia, namely Junior and his father.

2. How do you think the next section of the book will unfold?

We believe that Joe will decide on a form of action to take that will help him find a way out of his current position.

3. What do you think is Joe's hope for survival, or his goal?

Joe's goal is most likely being reunited with his daughter's again, and that is what keeps him going despite all of his troubles.

4. How do you think Joe will deal with the problem at hand?

We believe Joe will confess towards the end of the book, and therefore imprison all those involved with the mafia. We believe he will work out a deal that would keep him from extreme punishments, however.

5. What do you think causes Junior to enjoy such violent actions?

We believe that Junior is influenced by a lifetime of living under the head of the mafia, and that is what causes him to have such a negative personality.

Week 4: Joe Satkowski-Job A Mike Niego-Job B Jim Horvath-Job C Julian Sison-Job D

B: Since __Small Crimes__ is more straightforward than the books included in the school curriculum or other novels, it does not include imagery so much in the events of the story as much as it does within the characters themselves. The main image portrayed throughout the book is corruption, where the majority of the men on the police force in Bradley are involved with the mafia (personally, not as police officers), which causes them to overlook much of the crime occurring around them. The other main character that is used to create imagery is Manny Vassey Junior, the son of Manny Vassey, the head of the mafia in Bradley. Manny Vassey Junior is a deranged individual who tortures and murders people for the fun of it, rather than for their money or their possessions. Junior is the psychotic antagonist, the cliché evildoer who has major mental problems. Junior also represents fear, as all those around him are frightened by him, as they know he has great control over others' lives. They claim that he is worse than his father, a serious problem for Joe Denton, who has spent time with him and therefore knows his cruelty and hatred.

C. Joe brought in food this week, and we spent some time eating, and then moved right into the questions prepared for us, where we spent most of our time this week. Most of this week was spent contemplating the possible outcomes of the rest of the book. We all had a more positive hope for the ending of the book, where we believed that Joe Denton would eventually find a way out of the situation he is in now, or an "easy way out". We thought that Joe would be lucky and would be able to work out a deal where he could confess all his crimes and the crimes of the police officers he worked with on the force while avoiding great punishments for his crimes. We thought that this would most likely be what happened, and that the main positive thing for Joe is that things could not worsen so much anymore (or at least we hope so). This seems apparent to Joe as well, as he seems slightly hopeful even though his life is very difficult at the current moment.

Besides working on the questions set up for us, we also went to discuss the current happenings in the section of the book we read this week. We decided that as Joe's problems grow closer and closer, he becomes more dependent on cocaine and alcohol to relieve him temporarily from his problems, which is not so successful recently. We had also agreed that Joe was struggling a lot with his love life, as he had been seeing two different women at the same time, and had also been trying to solve problems with his ex-wife, and had been trying to work out custody issues with his children (or at least he was planning to). Joe seems so focused on seeing his daughters again that it seems as if that is the only thing motivating him at the current moment, besides the instinct within him to continue surviving as tough as life may be at the current moment. He is stuck between seeing his daughters and moving far away to a safe location. We agreed that we wanted to read the ending to answer all our questions.

D: 1. Do you think Joe Denton will go to jail eventually? Why or why not?

No, I do not think Joe will go to jail, as I believe the book would not end that way. Instead, I believe Joe will find a loophole out of the situation he is in now.

2. What, in your opinion, is Joe's biggest problem currently?

I believe Joe's biggest problem is Manny Vassey Junior, who is threatening to kill Joe (along with other people). Joe seems confused and surrounded by many major conflicts.

3. What are the possible solutions to Joe's problems?

Joe can possibly commit suicide, although he is afraid of the option. He can resort to murder or acting violently once again, and he can also confess to what he did.

4. Do you think Joe will ever get to see his daughters again? Why or why not?

We think that he will because it is in the terms of agreement when he was supposed to kill one of his two enemies.

5. How do you think the book will end?

We think that he will either convince his girlfriend Charlotte Boyd to kill Manny, or he will finally commit suicide.

Week 5: Jim Horvath-Job A Julian Sison-Job B Mike Niego-Job C Joe Satkowski-Job D

B: Overall, I had positive feelings for __Small Crimes__; Dave Zeltserman appeared to be consistent throughout the book in terms of suspense and action. Throughout the novel, he kept me captivated by effectively ending each section and chapter of the book with cliffhangers at the end. He kept the options open throughout the book so that it seemed possible that anything could happen, and did not give away the ending until the last moment. The ending was very shocking, and because of the high satisfaction I felt with the book, I would definitely recommend it to peers. The constant action and the way Dave Zeltserman drags the reader into the actual story creates such interest with the reader that it is difficult to stop reading the book at times. However, I did notice similar themes and events with the past book our book club had read, __No Country for Old Men__, as action and shooting was a major part of the novel. The events and actions were somewhat similar in the two novels, and the endings were relatively similar as well. I do believe that this book should be considered for the school's curriculum, assuming that the language and violence would be overlooked, and that it would be highly favored by those who would read it. I feel that it would provide a great variety in the school's curriculum by introducing different types of genres of reading.

C: We started by discussing this book's theme, and we realized that the theme was being in a major dilemma. Joe Denton was in the middle of making the hardest decision of his life. Throughout the book, Joe struggled with deciding whether to go after the district attorney or the mob boss, and whether to go see his daughters or run far away to safety. Joe's life seemed to be a dead end with no easy way out. There was so many things that could have gone wrong for him, but they were never what we expected.

The ending was a major shock. None of us expected Joe's own father to be the cause of his death. We all had hope that Joe would at least survive until the end of the book, and change his life for the better. Instead, his own father shot him because he didn't want Joe to be a bad influence on his children. This is also a great example of how all of Dave Zeltserman's characters are so twisted. Of all the ways Joe could have died, this was the least expected. Dave Zeltserman is a master at keeping his readers interested and providing surprise after surprise in his twisted stories.

D: 1. What are your opinions on the ending of __Small Crimes__?

We agreed that __Small Crimes__ was an excellent read that keeps the reader captivated throughout the entire storyline.

2. Did you expect the ending to be different than what it actually was?

We were surprised by the ending of the story, because we expected it to be more positive than it actually was.

3. What are your opinions on the overall plot of __Small Crimes__? Do you feel it was too long, too short, or just right?

The plot is full of unexpected twists and turns, and we didn't think it was too long or too short. It was fast-paced and very well written.

4. Do you believe Joe Denton is truly evil or is a good person?

Joe Denton, like most of Zeltserman's characters, is not good or evil, but rather a mix of both. You want to root for him, but at the same time, you're not sure whether or not you even like him. That is what makes Zeltserman's characters so intruiging and exciting to read about. It makes the story more exciting and unpredictable, as you never know what the characters are going to do next.

5. Do you think it was possible for Joe to escape his problems in any other way?

We believe that Joe could have avoided this whole situation if he had confessed his crimes earlier in the book. Throughout the story he was just digging a deeper and deeper hole for himself, when he could have stopped it all at the beginning.