The First Part Last Analysis

Almost the whole of the novel takes place in New York City, a place that Bobby thinks is the best. He loves everything about this city—his neighborhood, Central Park, and especially the hustle an...

The First Part Last is told almost entirely Bobby's perspective. It's his story and his journey from carefree kid to teen father, so by having him tell us about this experience, readers get an up-c...

Young Adult LiteratureIt's pretty clear how The First Part Last is classified as young adult literature. It's about teen pregnancy, our main character is only sixteen, and becoming a parent aside,...

Because the narrative is split between pre-parent Bobby, who is coming to terms with an unintended pregnancy, and single-dad Bobby, who is coming to terms with the joys and difficulties of fatherho...

The First Part Last is one giant conversation that Bobby has with himself, and he doesn't feel the need to pretty up his language. If a swear word is the best word for the situation, he says it, an...

The title pops up in the very first chapter, when an awestruck Bobby is holding his daughter. Check it out:But I figure if the world were really right, humans would live life backward and do the fi...

There's a reason that Bobby moves to Heaven, Ohio, and not Cleveland, Columbus, or Canton:I can tell you how it feels sitting in the window with Feather pointing out the creek that rolls past our b...

The First Part Last is fairly short, and the language isn't all that complex. But you know what is complex in the novel? Everything else. There are some pretty heavy moral issues (like how to appro...

Too Young for It AllIn the then chapters, we learn that Bobby, who's just turned sixteen, has gotten his girlfriend Nia pregnant. Oops. In the now chapters, we figure out that Bobby is functioning...

We first meet Bobby and Feather not in The First Part Last but as peripheral characters in Heaven, Ohio.  (Source) According to Johnson, kids are far more interesting than adults, and life exp...

The First Part Last is sort of about sex, but it's not really about sex at all—it's really about fatherhood, coming-of-age, and love. So while there are references to sex in the novel, all of the...

Empire State Building (2.2)Barney the Dinosaur (13.26-27)