Swing

“If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for everything.

Everything’s not political

Actually, everything is. You either uphold the status quo,

or you see what’s wrong and try to change it.”

This conversation between Sam and Noah takes place when Sam chooses not to stand up during the playing of the national anthem at Cruz’s baseball scrimmage. Though Sam does not specify what it is about society that she feels needs changing, boycotting anthems has commonly been used to protest police violence and racism, both of which are issues dealt with in the novel. The friends’ discussion plays out a debate contemporaneous to the novel’s writing and highlights the role of young people as agents of change.

“I’m just saying, the flags are a sign. // Of what? / Of things falling apart.”

The appearance of American flags throughout town has many citizens concerned. The purpose of their placement is not known, nor is the identity of the person placing them. Many conclude that they must be a political statement or protest. As the novel takes place during the United States’ war in Afghanistan, the characters consider it possible that the flags are associated with that, either as a statement of support or disapproval. In Walt/Swing’s view, the latter is more likely, and he predicts that unrest will follow. His words ironically foreshadow his own tragic death in a way that none of the characters envision, including the association with the US-Afghan war, through Mo’s involvement in both.

“The name’s Swing.

Swing? How’d you come up with that?

Tell her, Noah, he says again

Nah, you tell her, Swing

’Cause I’m hitting it out of the park next year. That’s why.

Baseball, girls, cool.”

Walt/Swing’s assigning of a nickname demonstrates how strong his commitment to making the baseball team is. By adopting a name with baseball connotations, Walt/Swing is able to constantly maintain focus on his goal. Importantly, the word “swing” has musical connotations as well, which is in keeping with Walt/Swing’s passion for jazz. The fact that he does not make the musical connection explicit suggests that he may be unaware of it and that it is a deep expression of his sense of identity.

“It’s time, he says, for you

to take

the training wheels off.

Time to take your feet

off the brakes

and put the pedal

to the metal. You gotta paint

your masterpiece, Noah.

You gotta ride

into daybreak.

You gotta tell Sam.

Today.”

After reading the letters by Corinthian, Walt/Swing encourages Noah to reveal his true feelings for Sam. They are both impressed by the letters’ ability to state complex feelings so effectively. Walt/Swing’s urging is in keeping with his carpe diem attitude toward life. He believes in taking risks to live life to the fullest and gradually convinces Noah to try this as well. The imagery he uses here to persuade Noah connotes exhilaration but also acknowledges the element of risk and lack of control.

“I take one of

Corinthian’s letters

retype

his story

of love

as if it’s my own.

I begin

with his words, trace a heart,

make them mine,

borrow

his love story.”

Noah writes out some of the lines from Corinthian’s letter, seeking inspiration to convey his feelings of love to Sam. This technique is effective, and Noah generates a piece of artwork that combines his drawings with Corinthian’s words. Though he does not intend to give her the artwork when he creates it, when Sam ultimately reads it, she is moved by its words of love.

“Written

all over her face

is a smile

peeking through

the confusion,

a hint

of hope

that this

could be real.”

Although Noah is not responsible for giving the artwork to Sam, nor did he come up with the idea to present it as being from a secret admirer, he is full of joy to see that his words have had a positive effect on Sam. That Sam is moved by them suggests to Noah that there is a possibility that she is not fulfilled in her relationship with Cruz and that she and Noah have a deeper connection. However, there is a tender mix of pain and hope expressed here because Noah still does not know how Sam will react if she knows he is the author.

“I’m not ready to accept

his pathetic apology.

Even if most

of what he says

makes sense,

it doesn’t take away

from the fact

he stole

my art like a thief,

gave it to Sam,

risking my humiliation.”

Though the artwork has had the desired effect on Sam—conveying Noah’s admiration of her—Noah is upset with Walt/Swing for giving the artwork to her without his permission. He feels deceived and regards Walt/Swing’s actions as overstepping the boundaries of their friendship. This is emblematic of the differences between Noah and Walt/Swing; one is cautious and thoughtful, while the other is spontaneous and a driving-force.

“A place where

jazz is king,

where the mind is all lit,

and what Swing calls

a transcendence of sorts.

And I do kinda feel it,

like maybe the rhythm

gets me.

So I draw.”

As he listens to more and more jazz, Noah begins to recognize what it is that Walt/Swing finds so moving about it. Though Noah was initially certain that jazz could never inspire him the way it does Walt/Swing, here he admits that he “feel[s] it.” “Maybe the rhythm gets me” echoes this phrase and is suggestive: The rhythm has an effect on Noah, but he also perhaps feels understood by the music. The “So” draws a direct causal line between this musical experience and Noah’s expression of his feelings about Sam in his artwork.

“Here, look. Help me read between the lines to figure out

who this rebel is, okay?

She shuffles them around

as I try to think

of an exit plan,

because I can feel a panic

swell up in me,

but I don’t want to be

a wimp.”

Sam asks Noah to help her brainstorm possible identities of her secret admirer. That she trusts Noah with this task demonstrates the strength of their friendship, but Noah is not yet comfortable revealing that he is the author of the letters. He is placed in a difficult position in which he wants to support Sam but does not want to give away his secret, and his turmoil and “panic” show how unnatural this situation is to him as a diffident person.

“I think you should have gotten an A in theatre class. You / read like a pro. You read like a boy who knows love.”

Sam asks Noah to read the love letters out loud. She is unaware that Noah is their author, and therefore her words have dramatic irony. Sam’s response suggests that while she does not suspect Noah, her good friend, to be the author of the letters, she is opening her eyes to the idea that he might have the potential to be a boyfriend.

“You don’t have any secrets, Noah. Never have. You’re a / perfectly normal guy.”

Sam’s words are again ironic, as she is unaware that Noah, as the author of the love letters, does indeed have a big secret. This creates suspense and momentum in the plot, as readers wonder whether or not she will ever know the truth, but also deepens the tension because of how misunderstood Noah is at this point.

“We listen

like we’re in church, on

bended knee, and our god

is Dexter Gordon.”

Noah’s metaphor underscores the theme of the power of art and music to stir up powerful emotions. Though he was initially skeptical of jazz’s ability to do so, the more Noah is exposed to jazz, the more he understands its pull and power. Listening to it is akin to a religious experience, as it touches Noah’s spirit deeply.

“Walt and I both look

at each other,

him with a smile,

me with a frown,

ʼcause once again

he’s throwing me

a curveball

that I can’t hit.”

When Sam inquires about one of Noah’s art books, Noah is unprepared to respond. He is keenly aware that his response could either impress Sam or lead her to believe that he is uncool. The baseball metaphor shows that Noah understands that Walt/Swing is trying to help Noah win Sam’s affections, but Noah is less confident in his ability to do so than Walt/Swing appears to be. Ultimately, though, Sam is moved when Noah shares his passion for visual art with her.

“I reach into

my pocket

and pull out

a pitch

I’ve been waiting

all my life

to throw.”

Determined to prove Cruz wrong when Cruz claims to be Sam’s secret admirer, Noah reveals a new letter. His use of a baseball metaphor conveys that the moment is fraught with tension and that Noah is taking a great risk by revealing his identity. It reflects the fact that Noah is in front of a crowd, and the use of baseball imagery, strongly associated with Walt/Swing, reminds the reader who has caused this turn of events. It also parallels Walt/Swing’s success in finally batting for the baseball team. The risk that Noah takes pays off, in keeping with the theme of Perseverance in the Pursuit of Passions.

“Police officers

don’t say freeze

like they do

in the movies.

They just make you

freeze in a fear

cloaked

in deep, dark dread.”

Noah’s description of the police upon their arrival at his house during the party foreshadows the novel’s ending. Although he feels tangibly threatened by the police’s presence, the tension is diffused on this occasion: This will not be the case when Mo and Walt are fired upon. Noah’s words here emphasize the power the police inherently wield over those without power or authority.

“I see [Mo’s] eyes

as he hugs Walt back.

They’re vacant,

like his body

left his soul

back in Afghanistan.”

Noah and others immediately recognize that Mo is experiencing negative effects as a result of his deployment, possibly undiagnosed PTSD. Walt/Swing either denies that Mo has changed or truly doesn’t recognize this reality amid the happiness of Mo’s return. The brother he loves and has been waiting for has not returned as the same person, and Walt/Swing can’t acknowledge that. Mo’s mental health condition will be key to the novel’s ending, as will Walt/Swings deep attachment to him.

“There’s no turning back

when love comes calling.

The past cannot be changed,

The future is in my hands

to be molded and shaped.”

In keeping with the theme of perseverance in the pursuit of one’s passions, Noah decides that he can control the direction that the newly-established romance between himself and Sam will take. His words are full of optimism and agency, reminiscent of Walt/Swing’s attitude . Here Walt’s insistence that Sam must be made aware of Noah’s true feelings for her has paid off, as Sam appears receptive to a romantic relationship.

“The week with Sam / is like a dream deferred / that’s finally arrived.”

In this allusion to a Langston Hughes poem (“Harlem”), Noah conveys his happiness at shifting his relationship with Sam from friendship to romance. Hughes’s poem argues that an unfilled dream can fester, becoming increasingly bothersome. The implication is that Noah would never have felt satisfied had he not conveyed his true feelings to Sam.

“I should be excited for him,

proud of him,

celebrating him.

But, I’m annoyed.

[…] I want to tell Walt

how I feel

insecure and unsettled,

share my frustration

and defeatist attitude.”

When Walt/Swing informs Noah that he has finally achieved his goal of making the baseball team, Noah expresses his support outwardly, but inwardly he is frustrated that he himself did not persevere in this same goal. Although he admires Walt/Swing’s tenacity and optimism, Noah wishes he could more effectively put Walt/Swing’s advice into practice. This passage shows Noah’s reflective, self-critical nature and his admiration of his friend’s different skills.

“As we wait

on the bleachers

for the game

to start, it’s

an unbelievable feeling

to have

my girl

by my side when

I’m getting ready

to cheer my

best friend.

Feels like

rebirth.”

This is an emotional high point for both Noah and Walt/Swing, as both have achieved their goals. Though the romance with Sam will be short-lived—and Walt/Swing will perform less than spectacularly—neither of the teens are disheartened. It is reaching the goal that is important. In this way, the theme of perseverance in pursuit of one’s passions is enacted.

“I stop

torturing myself,

get offline, and fall asleep

listening

to Beyoncé

ʼcause even though

it is what it is,

I still miss

what isn’t.”

Though Noah dislikes Beyoncé’s music and complained when Sam listened to it, he chooses to listen to it now because it reminds him of her. His taking an interest in her interests is in keeping with the theme of support and commitment to friendship and is also reminiscent of the way he learned to enjoy jazz despite initially disliking it. Noah notes here that he misses their friendship and also the romantic relationship that never fully developed.

“Mo […] doesn’t see us,

just the sky

he’s still swinging at,

which is now

crying a river,

just as Walt predicted.”

Early in the novel, Walt/Swing is certain that the presence of the American flags is a sign that some kind of chaos will soon ensue. In the moment that Walt/Swing and Noah witness Mo experiencing some kind of panic (likely due to trauma from his wartime service), they do not yet know just how true Walt/Swing’s predictions will be, as Walt/Swing will be shot and killed by police officers. His words have become prophetic, though not in a way either expected.

“[S]ix cops out

of nowhere six

cops erupt out

of nowhere six cops

erupt with

out of

nowhere six cops erupt

with commands out

of nowhere

six cops erupt

with commands and out

of nowhere six

cops erupt with

commands and

guns out

of nowhere.”

The form of this chapter enacts the frenzied emotion and confusion that Noah feels during the attack on Walt/Swing and Mo. The repetitive loop underscores the way in which the scene repeats relentlessly as Noah relives it. Further, the moving line breaks create a shifting pattern that blurs the action, expressive of things happening too fast but also stopping time like a slow-motion shutter.