Jennaralee Concerned about Short Stories

When we were reading the story, "This is What it Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona", I was a bit confused as to why the title was what it was. I understood that it was an important place for the main characters, as it was where Victor's father was and where they traveled to together and bonded over, but I didn't understand the first part: "This is what it means to Say"? It felt a little awkward, and slightly confusing. So, I've decided that I, an 18 year old girl with all the authority in the world, would re-title this story to a simple "Brotherhood". I think this is a pretty apt title if I do say so myself. The reason I want this to be the title is because I feel like bonds are a really important part of the story. There's this superficial kind of bond that Victor has to the rest of the tribe, which can be seen at the beginning with his encounter with the council. They seem to be looking at his situation very logically, lacking empathy for wh...

To me, the story "Evolution of My Brother" is a sort of coming of age story, but with two characters in focus instead of just one. It's almost about how they come of age together, though the siblings are quite far apart in age and logically one should come of age before the other. One of the motifs I felt were especially played out in this story was that of regret. Almost every time the narrator spoke from her perspective in the future, it sounded like she had regret or remorse for her actions in the past. Her words felt like explanations and please for understanding and forgiveness. However, there was one part that I felt the regret not from the narrator of the future, but of the Jenny of the past, and that is on page 159, where she is trying to stop her brother from coming in, and then locks him out of her room. The first part of this section reads "I took my slipper and whacked the tips of his fingers like he was a bug" (159). This is her immediate reaction...