43 pages • 1 hour read
David ChariandyA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Content Warning: This section of the guide describes and discusses the source text’s depictions of police brutality, murder, and racism.
The novel opens with the narrator Michael’s recollection of his older brother Francis’s favorite place: the top of a hydro (utility) pole. Climbing the pole is dangerous because of the possibility of electrocution, but making it to the top safely gives one an amazing vantage point over the city and sky. Francis teaches Michael how to climb the pole safely by following in his footsteps.