First Impressions (Chapter 1) From the first page of this book I can already tell the complex story plot and the different style from that of Bless Me, Ultima. The constant flashbacks are really confusing, just like the rest of the storyline. It took me a while to catch on Paul D and Sethe’s stories and relations from their conversation. I dislike the style the author uses, but I think it gives the book character …showed first 75 words of 817 total…

…showed last 75 words of 817 total…presents a contradiction. Although Beloved's story, according to the narrator, is “not a story to pass on,” the novel performs exactly that action. For the characters of the novel, forgetting Beloved is a necessity. The past must be dealt with in a healthy way. Although traces of Beloved remind them of her from time to time, the dead remain dead, and the relationship between the characters and their past is allowed to become more manageable.