The girl’s swinging breasts “like pendulums”
The narrator uses a simile to bring out the imagery of the flabby girl's swinging breasts as she dances under the spotlight. Specifically, the girl’s swinging breasts are likened to swinging pendulums, a situation which allows the perception of their heavy nature while at the same time promoting imagery: “Under the spotlight, a flabby white girl danced, her breasts swinging like pendulums.”
The stripes on the Cici’s stomach
As Cici plays the role of the guardian angel and saves Nadia from the old man who is brought out as having been interested in taking advantage of her, the appearance of the stripes on her stomach is vividly brought out. The narrator says that Cici was “Light brown streaked across her stomach like tiger stripes.” The use of this simile facilitates imagery.”
Maternal love
Nadia explains how the police officer who had found the abandoned baby given birth to by a girl in her high school might have discovered the fact that the girl who had reported the case had been the real mother to the abandoned child. The effect of maternal love in exposing the real mother of the child is brought out through its comparison to a golden thread. The narrator notes: “…even as he backed away, the maternal love that stretched like a golden thread from her to the abandoned baby.”
Pastor’s kids
The foul and pretentious behavior of the pastor’s kids is brought out in this work. While on one hand the pastor’s son chases after girls flipping their dresses up, the sister “smears on bright lipstick that makes her look like a harlot.” The simile is used to enhance imagery of the appearance of the pastor’s daughter.
The tense nature of Nadia’s father “like a guard dog”
The tenseness and always unsettled nature of Nadia’s father is brought out through the use of a simile. The writer compares this unsettled behavior to that of a guard dog: “He was quiet and intense, a tall, wiry man who never seemed to relax, like a guard dog on his haunches, his ears always perked up.” The comparison enhances imagery.
