When they're not watching Digimon, nine-year-olds "are able to write and read skillfully, and […] able to read different types of fictional and non-fictional works, including biographies, poems, historical fiction, suspenseful series, and more" (source).
In Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Oskar Schell isn't your typical nine-year-old. To that list of genres, add "a letter from Grandma," "letters from Grandpa to Dad," "numeric codes," and "astrophysics." This book isn't just about talking to people in New York to find a lock, it's about all the different ways people in the city communicate, both written and orally.
In some ways, it's more about the failure to communicate, and how that makes it hard to deal with trauma. There are so many missed opportunities for communication in the novel: between Oskar and his mother; Thomas, Sr. and Thomas, Jr.; Abby Black and Oskar; William Black and his father.
Questions About Language and Communication
- Why does Grandpa stop talking? Does his method of communication lead to any misunderstandings?
- What do you think Grandpa says when he tries to communicate with Grandma simply by pushing buttons on the telephone?
- Why does Grandpa write so many letters but never send them to his son?
- Why does Mr. Black choose to live with his hearing aid turned off? How does his life change when Oskar turns it on?