Essay Questions

Why do most of the characters in the novel remain unnamed?

One of the first things that is noticed while reading Hell of a Book is that its characters, including the narrator, do not have a name. Though each of the unnamed characters is important to the plot of the story and the understanding of the book's themes, the ambiguity of their identity is purposeful. The narrator himself struggles with understanding who he is as a person, so does not have a name for others to call him.

His rise to fame as an author also has left him feeling like no one truly understands him - as if he doesn't even have a name. Soot, the only character with a nickname in the novel, is only "named" because of the defining color of his dark skin.

How does Mott's method of storytelling change through the course of the novel?

In the beginning chapters of the novel, it is not at all clear that one of the primary themes of Hell of a Book is the significance of race. In fact, it almost seems as if the book is a romantic comedy, given that the narrator is being chased through the halls for sleeping with someone else's wife. However, with the introduction of Soot and the Kid into the narrator's sphere of influence, the mode of storytelling by Mott begins to change. What once was an ambiguous allusion to racial epithets morphs into a straightforward telling of the struggles of African Americans.

What is the significance of the title of Hell of a Book?

For almost any book, the title is one of the most important features and the thing that readers notice first. For Hell of a Book, it is no different. In fact, the main character of Hell of a Book is only know for writing a "hell of a book". However, the title is also representative of the story of one's life. Packed with struggles, the narrator has a harsh story to tell and understand, making Hell of a Book an appropriate title.