"Norman Bowker followed the tar rod on its seven-mile loop around the lake, then he stared all over again, driving slowly, feeling safe inside his father's big Chevy, now and then looking out on the lake to watch the boars and water-skiers and scenery." (p. 130)
"In the interests of truth, however, I wan to make it clear that Norman Bowker was in no way responsible for what happened to Kiowa. Norman did not experience a failure of nerve that night. He did not freeze up or lose the Silver Star for valor. That part of the story is my own." (p. 154)
The chapter from which the first quote originates and the two chapters proceeding it really caught my attention. Each time the story of Kiowa's death was repeated, it changed a bit. In the end , when O'Brien explains that he is, in a way, the Norman from his story, it took a moment for me to fully understand. It was as though everything I had thought I had read changed right before my eyes. Finally, my brain clicked and suddenly I understood. With that understanding came a feeling of, well, I felt sorry for O'Brien. Imagining the weight of the guilt he must have felt makes one feel that way. Most importantly though, I liked how the second quote helps to explain and clarify what happens throughout the next chapter.
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