Some Trees Will Bend, Some Will Fall

In the end, history repeats itself.

However, not in the way I had expected. Toward the end of the novel, I found myself thinking that either Carl was going to kill Fred or Fred was going to kill Carl or one of them would kill themselves. There was so much anger, tension, and self-pity built up around these two characters, that disaster seemed imminent.

I was thrown for a loop when in the final pages, a devious plan was concocted by Adam, who up until this point had seemed completely innocuous. His love for Elizabeth had been transferred to Carl and he could no longer stand by and watch Carl's life fall apart. In a cooly calculated and bold manner, he reinacted the night of Elizabeth's death -- only this time, he was at the wheel instead of Carl and Fred was his passenger. He had meticulously planned every last detail to ensure his crime appeared to be an accident and left everything he had to Carl and Lizzie. In the ultimate sacrifice, he committed suicide and murder by running his car into a tree.

After Adam's passing, Carl discovers that Adam was his father, through a letter Adam has left for him. I wonder if now Carl will be able to start his life again, knowing that he is no longer tied to the fate of his father? Or will he suspect this accident was in fact a crime, committed on his behalf, and be once again crippled by guilt and grief? Will he be able to outrun his tragic history, or be tied down forever?

We are left to wonder....

And so, I will close with this song, which ponders the future noting "some trees will bend and some will fall, but then again, so will us all." Click below to hear "In a Future Age" by Wilco.

Characters Come to Life

As I am nearing the end of the book, the characters have begun to reveal much more about themselves to me. For instance at the beginning of the novel, Fred Verghoers, Chrissy's new boyfriend, seems like a stand-up guy: he runs a successful business, has a happy family with Chrissy and Lizzie and is running for Reeve of the town next year. However, we just learned that in fact, he beats Chrissy and he attacks Carl in the parking lot of the shopping center, leaving him for dead.

Meanwhile, Adam, whom most people believed to be homosexual, was in fact having an illicit relationship with Elizabeth for several years before she cut him off and has since been tortured by his love for her, even after her death.

It seems that Carl is in fact capable of turning his life around, and he has become a model father with a prospective career in the insurance business. And Luke Richardson, seen as the town weasel, may actually have honest intentions afterall, as he tries to set things straight between Fred and Carl.

As someone who truly enjoys a character driven story, I have developed a strong appreciation for Elizabeth and After. As I have mentioned many times in this novel response, I believe that the characters in this novel are so strong (along with the incredible descriptive passages about scenes and emotion), that it would be a great story for a film adaptation.

Click here to view a .pdf of the poster I created for the film.

If I were casting this film, below are some actors who would be my top choices for playing the character of West Gull. I'd choose Jason Reitman, a Canadian whose credits include the award winning, character driven film Juno to direct the film.

Christopher Plummer (a Canadian) as Old William McKelvey:

Tom Welling as Young William McKelvey:

Meryl Streep as an Older Elizabeth McKelvey:

Anna Kendrick as a Young Elizabeth McKelvey:

Jake Gyllenhaal as Carl McKelvey:

Holly Hunter as Chrissy McKelvey:

Christoper Waltz as Adam Goldsmith:

Randy Quaid as Luke Richardson: