Part III: Eat the Bird

Thus far I have read up to chapter thirty-five, and a lot has changed. For one, this section starts ten years later. Ned is in graduate school in Arizona, Sam is back in Mohawk, Jenny is almost fully recovered and is dating her long-time lawyer, F. William Peterson. Ned leaves Arizona and graduate school, where he has mostly stopped attending classes and is broke due to excessive gambling, and goes back to Mohawk to visit his mom and check on his dad, who apparently has a severe drinking problem. Ned immediately gets a job bartending and has a run-in with Mrs. Ward and Tria. After attending brunch at their house, Ned agrees to help Mrs. Ward with a project based on the history of Mohawk. Sam has once again faced legal charges, but both Sam and F. William Peterson, who is also representing Sam, think the charges will be dropped. The topic of “the risk pool” once again made an appearance, however this time was not in reference to a pool table. The risk pool is referred to in reference to Sam’s insurance rate and debt. I made the wrong assumption when I assumed the title referred to a pool table. I’m almost done with the book, and I’m excited to see how everything ends.