• Home
  • About
    • About Treefall Writing
    • About Melinda Tognini
    • Comments Policy
  • My Books
    • Many Hearts, One Voice
    • Tales From Our Home
    • Other Publications
  • Young Writers: Competitions
  • Work with Me
    • Workshops
    • Mentoring & critiquing
    • Oral history
    • Working in schools
  • Blog
    • Reading
    • Writing
    • Family history
    • Young writers
  • Contact
  • Home
  • About
    • About Treefall Writing
    • About Melinda Tognini
    • Comments Policy
  • My Books
    • Many Hearts, One Voice
    • Tales From Our Home
    • Other Publications
  • Young Writers: Competitions
  • Work with Me
    • Workshops
    • Mentoring & critiquing
    • Oral history
    • Working in schools
  • Blog
    • Reading
    • Writing
    • Family history
    • Young writers
  • Contact
scroll down for more
Reading

6 Degrees of Separation: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Melinda Tognini October 1, 2016 No Comments
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Email

6-degrees-elic-3

Welcome back to Six Degrees of Separation, a literary meme in which Kate from booksaremyfavouriteandbest gives us the title of a book, and we link it to six others in any way we wish. It’s easy, and fun, so please play along. This month’s starting point is Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is about a nine-year-old boy, Oskar, whose father is killed in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre.

Claire Zorn’s The Protected also deals with the grief of losing a family member. When Hannah’s sister is killed in a car accident, her father can’t remember what happened, and her mother spends most of her time shut away in her room.

Prior to her sister’s death, Hannah endured horrific bullying. A much older novel that explores both bullying and grief is Bridge to Terabithia, written by Katherine Paterson, and first published in 1977.

6-degrees-elic

Another book with ‘bridge’ in the title is The Bridge over the River Kwai by Pierre Boulle, about British prisoners-of-war (POWs) in Burma. For me, this immediately brings to mind Narrow Road to the Deep North, by Richard Flanangan, who writes about Australian POWs during the Second World War.

Deborah Burrows’ novels are set during the Second World War, too. The first three are set in Australia – on the Homefront – while her latest novel, Ambulance Girls, is set in London. The protagonist is an Australian girl, Lily Brennan, who becomes an ambulance driver during the Blitz.

I can’t seem to get away from the Second World War, because I’m reminded of the children from C.S. Lewis’ classic, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. They are sent away from London to escape the war, and end up fighting battles of a very different kind.

6-degrees-elic-2

So, I began with a young boy who sets out to solve the mystery of a key he found in his father’s wardrobe, and ended up with siblings who enter a wardrobe and find themselves in another world.

Over to You

Starting with Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, where does Six Degrees of Separation lead you? Post the answer on your own blog, or in the comments section below

6-degrees-of-separation-extremely-loud-and-incredibly-close

 

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
  • Share This:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Email
Previous 7 Writing Prompts for Memoir and Family History
Next Home
Melinda Tognini

story-gatherer & mentor

Related Posts
6 Degrees of Separation: From Sorrow and Bliss to Lost and Found June 4, 2022
Book Notes: So Many Beats of the Heart by Carrie Cox May 31, 2022
So Many Beats of the Heart: In-Conversation with Carrie Cox May 24, 2022

Your comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sign-Up to my Monthly Newsletter

Sign up here to receive regular writing resources, research tips and creative prompts, as well as reading recommendations and MAD links. 

Privacy

Read my full privacy policy here , but essentially I promise to keep your information confidential and not pass on your details to any 3rd parties. Ever.

Blog Categories

  • Reading
    • Reading recommendations
    • 6 Degrees of Separation
    • Stories that matter
    • My story
    • Five Faves
    • Reading
  • Writing
    • Writing
    • Writing prompts
    • Writing quotes
    • Writing resources
    • Creating space for your story
    • Family History
    • Young Writers

What I’m Reading

goodreads

Australian Society of Authors

asa_logo_col

Interesting Blogs

  • speakupforthose
  • wwwssnaveenravi
  • Stephen McAlpine
  • Reid on Writing
  • My summer as a chaplain
  • Natasha Orme
  • Treefall Writing
  • Gove Peninsula Festival: Nhulunbuy East Arnhem Land
  • Memoir Notes
  • Write Note Reviews
  • isobelblackthorn.com
  • Theresa Kaminski
  • Booklength Project Group
  • Journeying Beyond Breast Cancer
  • Mirymom's Blog
  • Latest Comments

    I would love to know what you think once you have finished them - I always love seeing your perspective on the books you read x
    In 6 Degrees of Separation: From Sorrow and Bliss to Lost and Found
    I found that fascinating too - especially given the reasons for the connection were totally different.
    In 6 Degrees of Separation: From Sorrow and Bliss to Lost and Found
    There are so many fabulous writers in Australia (both fiction and non-fiction), so I love being able to share them with others who might be less familiar with them!
    In 6 Degrees of Separation: From Sorrow and Bliss to Lost and Found

    Recent Posts

    • One-Word Creative Prompts #2
    • 6 Degrees of Separation: From Sorrow and Bliss to Lost and Found
    • Book Notes: So Many Beats of the Heart by Carrie Cox
    • So Many Beats of the Heart: In-Conversation with Carrie Cox
    • Six Degrees of Separation: from True Story of the Kelly Gang to My Grandmother Sends her Regards and Apologises
    • Family History: Keeping a Research Log

    Follow or Contact Melinda Tognini

    • Facebook
    • Email
    • Twitter
    • Pinterest
    Melinda Tognini (c) 2018 | Site by ICTECH