Chapter 2 Outside Reading Week 7(final one)

Part I
Figurative speech

"No, you were on your own now, and your blood was in the water." (symbol)
Symbolizes that the subject is screwed/in trouble.

"But his courtiers were a study in inscrutability." (metaphor)
Describes how they were difficult to read; not an actual study.

"...and Abdur Nassiri, the colorless first minister who was now acting head of state..." (imagery)
Creates a visual image of the minister's personality.

Part II
In the final section of the book, I have come to the conclusion that if it weren't for the ending and final chapters, i probably would have come away from the Moonlight Hotel feeling pretty irritated that i wasted so much time on such a slow moving story. Now, i have read the Old Man and the sea (and i loved it) which is supposed to be a slow book, but it appealed to me more. It was a book of physical and willful struggle, both concepts which i found very entertaining. Meanwhile, the Moonlight Hotel was far more depressing throughout; the major theme was finding anything to cope with the horrors of siege and war. With the exception of the book's love interest, Amira Chalsani, these supposed bright spots were very realistic, and so, somewhat dim. I'm not saying that i wanted this book to be unrealistic, but i think that it was so close to reality that it was just boring. In three days, i sped through a book of similar length, simply because it was far more interesting and amusing.

Now, i did mention that the ending saved it for me, bringing it up to an acceptable level on my personal scale. In the last few chapters, the book finally picked up the pace and sprinted for the story's climax, with General Kalima leading a sneak attack upon the KPLA that was hurriedly planned. Finally, as an interesting twist, David, whom the story follows, was knocked unconscious and taken prisoner during the battle (which the rebels, not Kalima's army, won) and regained consciousness, to find the city in new hands, with the Americans and foreigners back. This change in who knows what is going on (from me, to the other characters in the story) was a very nice way to end the story, with something of a happier ending coming out of the darker times.