Essay Questions

According to the chorus, it is not ignorance which is bliss, but what?

One very familiar and common form of figurative language popular with writers takes the form of a proverbial adage which forwards a broad conceptualization of wisdom. Or, in other words, pearls of wisdom which take the form of a very simplistically stated in a short and pithy way. In addition to being almost universally familiar, these pearls of wisdom are popular with writers as a means of conveying certain well-worn conventionally accepted truth. But they are also popular for almost the exact opposite reason. These proverbial adages also attain popularity among authors because most of the wisdom contained within them can be twisted and turned and bent and shaped to make a point. The chorus engages this particular usefulness to subvert the widely believed expression of knowledge about what is and what is not the epitome of pure happiness and contentment: “Ignorance is not bliss. Bliss is knowing the full meaning of what you have been given.”

The chorus asserts that the hardest part of telling the truth always lies in that first sentence. How is this idea immediately exemplified?

The chorus serves multiple purposes in the novel. One very significant role is that of partial narrator. The entire narrative is not told through the perspective of the chorus. At some points, the story is simply related through an anonymous third-person perspective. In addition to relating factual details of events taking place, the chorus also sometimes waxes philosophic. The assertion that the first sentence is the hardest part of the telling the truth is immediately followed by advice that the second gets easier while the third sentence is easier than the second and so on and so forth. The idea being that if you just lay out the fundamental truth of the big picture at the beginning, all the subsequent details will go more smoothly. This idea is demonstrated through Avery’s confession of his biggest secret to Ryan: “I was born a boy in a girl’s body.”

What actual historical event inspired a major element of the narrative?

When Craig was a kid, he—like many kids—glommed onto a copy of the Guinness Book of World Records and briefly got lost within the beautiful madness of its myriad accomplishments. And, like most readers, he subscribed to the attraction which has made it a bestseller over many decades: “the odder the record, the better.” And so, the kid who was enthralled by the size of the world’s largest cherry pie or the man holding the distinction of being able to fit more nails into his mouth than anyone else on the planet ever even thought of trying grows up to become the young man who sets his mind to breaking the record for the longest kiss with the extra added attraction of the kiss being shared between two males. This plot mechanism was directly inspired by real world events. On September 8, 2010, two male college students, Matty Daley and Bobby Canciello, set a new record by holding a kiss for over thirty-two hours. It should be noted, of course, that this is the only intentional resemblance between the fictional characters in the book and their real-world inspirations.