Blumes’s Reviews > Montana 1948 > Status Update

Reading about Marie's death did not particularly shock me. Putting two and two together allowed for me to realize that Marie could have been murdered and I think it was Frank. I think that since Wesley was so busy with trying to minimize Frank's penalty, he got distracted. I am excited to learn more about Marie's death and am interested in who was envolved if any were.

Having understood Grandpa Hayden more and more I have learned that he is addicted to power and does not care very much about others. The author presents Frank as Grandpa's favorite even though he has two sons. It is seen that he is extremely sexist and rude, so it does not surprise me that Frank turned out the way he did. He is looked upon as a powerful man when in reality he is pathetic.

When Wesley is in the middle of Franks investigation he tries to shield his son from the evil in their town. Frank should be arrested for his actions but his brother wants to minimize the consequences. Frank does not deserve any second chances. If he were to be arrested and punished to the fullest extent he would serve around 20 to 40 years. In my eyes Frank should rot in prison or should at least be put on trial.

Daisy and Len are two new characters who seem fairly nice but slightly suspicious. When Davy talks about the new characters they seem incredibly kind, "Len used to carve little animals for my play, and Daisy never stopped baking cookies for me" (p.39). But on the other hand when the adults are talking Davy overhears Daisy say, "Just the squaws though" (p.41) which leads the readers to believe that she is racist.

Learning about uncle Frank more in depth allowed for deeper understanding of Davy's father Wesley more as well. After uncovering Frank's secret the writer conveys that Wesley new all along what was going on. This reflects the duality of Franks character, viewed by society as a hero , when behind closed doors his behavior is evil. reading about David's reaction to the news incited deep empathy and sadness.

The author introduced Marie and Ronnie her boyfriend in an interesting way. Since Ronnie was described as an amazing athlete he should be playing sports at a collegiate level. He was unable to perform at a high level because of the color of his skin. The way the author mentally illustrated such a racist environment helps show the racist way of life back then.