Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer

I’ve just started the book Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer. The first chapter of the novel impressed me with the realistic language of the assumed storyteller. However, after reading on to the next two chapters, I was a little confused as the story shifted to two centuries earlier; the beginning of the storyteller’s family history. In the first chapter, the story teller, Alexander Perchov, explains to the reader his family, the nicknames he is given and the nicknames he gives his family, his Ukrainian background, and about his lifestyle. After doing this, though, his father briefly mentions a planned event for Alex to take part in because he can speak English well, and leaving the reader questioning what is about to happen, Foer skips on to the next chapter. In this chapter and the one following, Perchov’s strange family history is explained, as his great- great- great- great... great grandmother was found in a river after her parents’ carriage mysteriously crashed into the river and the parents were never found. The baby girl was taken into the home of the rabbi, who later gave the baby to a man who had been present when she was found. The chapter ends here and it looks as though the next chapter starts with a letter to a new character. This interesting start to the novel makes me excited to keep reading on to find out what other exciting events will take place!