48 pages • 1 hour read
Tom RogersEleven
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2014A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 26-34Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 26 Summary: “The Man in the White Shirt: 12:46 p.m.”
The Man in the White Shirt enters a grocery store to use a phone but is unable to get a connection. The grocer gives the man a complimentary bottle of water. Not realizing how thirsty he is, the man gulps it down. Outside, something lands with a thump, and he sees a bird coated in dust and ash. Pouring water on the bird, the man discovers that it is a white dove.
Chapter 27 Summary: “Friends: 1:07 p.m.”
In New Jersey, Mac’s phone rings and he quickly picks it up, hoping to hear his son’s voice. Instead, it is his old friend, Charlie, who lives in California and has called to check on Bobby. Mac reveals that he has heard nothing and that his wife, Dottie, does not understand. He thanks Charlie for being a good friend.
Chapter 28 Summary: “Heroes: 1:07 p.m.”
Mr. Patel, a pizza shop owner, sees Alex, Nunu, and Radar outside and invites them in. Alex claims that he is not hungry, but really, he has no money. Mr. Patel pretends that there is a lunch rebate special, so he gives Alex a dollar and then takes it back, offering pizza in return. He even brings Radar a bowl of meatballs. Alex is saddened at the thought of returning the dog but believes it is necessary for his father to return home safely. Watching a firetruck roll by, Alex wishes he were a hero. When Nunu is still hungry, Mr. Patel gives them more pizza.
Chapter 29 Summary: “The Man in the White Shirt: 2:33 p.m.”
The Man in the White Shirt arrives at a hospital to donate blood. The nurse turns him away because the blood bank is full. The man wants to help, but he realizes that the hospital is empty because there are not many survivors. The nurse encourages him to go home, where he is needed most.
Chapter 30 Summary: “Dead End: 3:10 p.m.”
Alex thinks of all his mistakes, especially the hateful words that he thinks put his father in danger. He believes that returning Radar to his rightful owner is the only way he can fix everything. When Nunu asks him if their father will be home early, he lies and says yes, hoping it is true.
They walk to Van Orton Street, Radar’s home. However, the dog refuses to proceed down the street. Alex picks him up and carries him to 417, only to see the burned remains of a house. Alex is terrified that he will not be able to return the dog. Suddenly, Radar creeps through an opening in the fence with Nunu not far behind. As he tries to crawl through, Alex is stopped by an unfriendly voice telling him to freeze. The man, who seems to be holding a gun in his pocket, threatens to call the cops. When Radar returns, the man softens, recognizing the dog.
Chapter 31 Summary: “Van Orton Street: 3:14 p.m.”
The man tells Alex that Radar was abandoned by drug dealers who lived in the house at 417. Once they left, another group came in and burned the place down. Radar recognizes the man, who lives next door. Walking to his house, he shows Alex that he is holding a remote control, not a gun.
Inside, Alex learns that the man’s name is Mac. The kids then meet Dottie, Mac’s wife, who calls them bunnies and then turns back to her cartoons. As Mac gets them a snack, Nunu watches TV with Dottie and Alex worries about returning Radar. Drawn by voices in the next room, he sees a television tuned in to the news. He listens in horror. Alex stands motionless until Mac mutes the television. Seeing the gruesome details with his own eyes, Alex voices his fear that his dad will not return home. Mac gruffly insists that Alex’s father will return, just as his son who works in the North Tower will. When Alex adamantly refutes this, Mac yells at him. Crying, Alex confesses his mean words to his father and the unsuccessful deal to return Radar; Mac laughs, admitting that he has made his own deals all day long. They confide details of their loved ones and realize that there are many similarities between them, including their white work shirts and their love of the Yankees. Mac also shares that his son volunteers at soup kitchens and donates blood. They both try calling their family. Miraculously, both phones ring.
Chapter 32 Summary: “The Man in the White Shirt: 3:34 p.m.”
In Manhattan, in a pile of rubble, the man’s phone rings. However, no one is there to answer. Because the man is still unnamed, it is unclear if the phone belongs to Bobby or Alex’s father.
Chapter 33 Summary: “Everything’s Changed: 3:35 p.m.”
Neither Alex nor Mac gets through to someone. Then, the boy asks why the attacks happened. When Alex asks more questions, Mac can only say that sometimes things do not make sense. Mac shares an axiom his wife always says in hard times: “Better to light a candle than curse the darkness” (142).
Alex notes that the world has changed. However, Mac leads the boy outside to see the birds, the sky, and the sunshine, emphasizing that nothing has changed and that it is a matter of perspective. The older man gives his wife as an example: For a while, all he could see was that her mind was going, and he was losing his wife. Now, he appreciates every moment with her. He continues to say that terrible things help us see the wonderful in the world. However, when Alex repeats that his dad may be gone, Mac explodes, revealing his fear of losing his son. When Mac begins to cry, Alex pats his shoulder, and they sit in silence.
Alex notices that there are no airplanes in the sky. Mac shows the boy his garage filled with model airplanes he built and flew with Bobby. When Alex names all of them, Mac is impressed. He tells a story of how his wife argued with him about the planes and threw a frying pan at him. Mac notes that despite this, she still loves him. Alex hopes his dad feels the same way. They choose a plane to fly. When it is Alex’s turn, he hesitates, nervous to take control of a real plane. However, he quickly learns to maneuver the aircraft. The flying gives Alex a break from his worries. He then insists he must get his sister home, but not before the duo flies the plane one more time.
Chapter 34 Summary: “The Man in the White Shirt: 6:02 p.m.”
On the George Washington Bridge, the crowd sees a plane and panics that another attack is coming. The Man in the White Shirt recognizes it as an F-15—a military jet come to help. He watches until the aircraft is a tiny speck. Remembering his family, he turns to walk home.
Chapters 26-34 Analysis
The structure and suspense of the narrative both develop the book’s tone. The primary question throughout centers on the identity of the Man in the White Shirt, who could be either Bobby, Mac’s son, or Alex’s dad. Both wear white shirts and both know about planes. However, Mac’s revelation that Bobby regularly donates blood suggests that the unnamed man may be his son because of his stop at the hospital. The suspense adds to the tone of anxiety that has been building throughout the narrative. Once Alex realizes what has transpired in Manhattan, he panics when thinking about his dad and Alex’s angry last words to him. This combined with the shorter, faster-paced chapters helps to build suspense and anxiety. In the longer chapters—“Van Orton Street” and “Everything’s Changed”—there are moments of respite from the anxiety when Alex meets Mac and receives comfort and care from the man. These interactions, like flying a plane together, provide comfort to the boy. Like the candle in Dottie’s saying, these moments supply some hope for both characters as each waits for a loved one to return home.
After the cruelty of Jordan and his sidekicks, these chapters provide examples of compassion and kindness, developing the theme of Heroism in Ordinary People. When the Man in the White Shirt enters a store to make a phone call, the owner gifts him a bottle of water, something the man did not even realize he needed until he took a sip. Alex and Nunu are also given food by the pizza shop owner, who fabricates a deal to make them think they are paying for the meal. Furthermore, despite all he has endured, the Man in the White Shirt stops at a hospital to donate blood. Instead of focusing only on their own survival, individuals in the narrative demonstrate kindness, revealing that the tragedy has inspired selflessness and compassion. Mac encapsulates this phenomenon when he tells Alex, “Human beings have done evil things to each other for as long as there’ve been human beings. We also do kind things, too. Rescue a stray dog. Keep an old man company” (142). The kind things that Mac lists are heroic because they are done amidst tragedy. Furthermore, they are things Alex has done, suggesting that he, too, is a hero, even if he is not flying a fighter jet to save the world.
Through his encounter with Mac, Alex learns a lot and their interactions emphasize multiple themes: Maturing When Faced with Adversity and The Personal Impact of Large-Scale Tragedy. When faced with the actual news footage, Alex is overwhelmed and thinks, “[T]here’s knowing, and then there’s seeing. Seeing [is] a thousand times worse. Seeing [makes] it real” (136). Before this, Alex is aware of what has happened. He has even seen the smoke rising from the vestiges of the towers, yet the reality has not sunk in until now. The “realness” of viewing footage has made Alex cognizant of the fact that his dad may not return. Until now, his “deals” have seemed superficial and made him feel as if the situation were manageable: He could easily reverse the bad stuff happening on this day. However, the personal impact is amplified when he is forced to confront the magnitude of the attacks. By watching the news report, Alex demonstrates growth because he is not choosing to ignore reality; instead, he is confronting it head-on. With this choice, he also maturely understands that there is a possibility that his father will not return. Furthermore, he starts to understand his responsibilities when he declines Mac’s offer to stay because he “‘promised [he’d] get Nunu home […] six hours ago’” (148). It would be easier—and more comforting—to stay and fly planes with Mac, but Alex makes the mature decision to head home to wait for his parents.
