Julia and Jason
I
thought that one of the most interesting relationships in Black Sawn
Green was Julia and Jason's relationship. When we first meet them at
the beginning of the book they have a terrible relationship but by the end they
are very close.
At the beginning of the book we did not like Julia much at all because
she called Jason "thing" instead of his name. She also was quick to
tell and get mad at him. I warmed to Julia once she totally owned Uncle Brian
at dinner. As we kept reading I also noticed how much Jason looked up to Julia.
It made me wish that they could have a better relationship because Julia could
have such a good influence on him. We saw their relationship get better as
their parent’s relationship got worse. This made me really happy because it was
really good for them to have a support system as their parent’s marriage
started to get worse. Jason even calls Julia an "ally" during this
time.
We really see how much their relationship has progressed when it is the
next semester and Julia is gone at collage. Jason talks about how much he
misses Julia when he comes home and is all alone. He no longer has someone who
is his "ally" during their parent’s divorce living in the house with
him. However, I do think the separation of Julia and Jason is necessary for
them to become much closer because they can no longer annoy each other
24/7.
We can even see Julia giving Jason advice something that I love. Julia is
able to help Jason with things he feels he cannot ask his parents. Julia
is the one who convinces Jason to go to the school dance. Once Jason goes he has
a pretty good night. Julia can give him good advice because she has already
lived through being 13 and she understands what it’s like to be 13 when Jason
is 13 (something their parents do not).
In
all I am really happy with how their relationship progressed through the book
and I am glad that they can be close now.
From the perspective of an older sister, I also loved watching their relationship evolve. I also especially loved the part at the end when she encourages him to continue poetry. It showed how much she notices him and knows how he struggles, and how she wants to keep supporting him. It really touched me personally and I felt that their bond was one of the best in the book.
ReplyDeleteI think the time Jason and Julia spent apart was good for their relationship. I feel like it taught both of them how special the other was. Julia became more supportive and gave advice, and Jason became less of a pain. A similar thing happened to me when my sister left for college, so I can imagine how much more helpful and caring Julia was.
ReplyDeleteIt was heartwarming to see their relationship grow. There's the old phrase, "you don't know what you have until it's gone" (at least for awhile).
ReplyDeleteAs the younger sibling, I definietely know I did things that annoyed my brothers: using their stuff without permission, ease-dropping on conversation, etc. (Don't get me wrong, I'm not proud of it.) However, ever since they left the house, I've become a lot closer to both of them. Maybe it's because we've all grown up a bit, or maybe it's because we haven't seen each other in awhile.
If Black Swan Green had a sequel, I can't help but think Jason and Julia's relationship would only get stronger.
The first time we met Julia in the book I hated her. She was such a typical older sibling and she was so rude to Jason. She seemed like a pretty one-dimensional character. But as the book went on Julia became one of my favorite characters. She is so witty, especially when it comes to arguing with her dad and defending her mom and she is also really good at distracting/comforting Jason when their parents are fighting and when they have to move after the divorce.
ReplyDeleteI remember reading the first few chapters and wondering why Julia, who was 18, was still calling her little brother "thing", and disliking her for that. However, as the book progressed, I grew to really love her character. I think the distance between Jason and Julia after she moved away really helped their relationship, probably because it's easier to like your siblings when you're not fighting over the everyday stuff like who has to wash the dishes.
ReplyDeleteI think especially because of their parents' divorce, Julia is forced to mature faster than usual in order to give Jason one source of stability. I wonder, had their parents just remained unhappy together instead of actively divorcing, if she would have kept picking on Jason like in the first January Man.
ReplyDeleteIt's really awesome how their relationship improves from hostiles to confidants. Two people going through a hardship together often brings them closer. I would say that's true in this case, when their parents' hostility about the rock garden brought the two together since they only had each other.
ReplyDelete