Lost in Place

(1) THE AUTHOR and HIS/HER TIMES

* Born/died

* Biographical background important to understanding the book

* Important family, community, national and world events that influenced author and book

* Other artistic or literary influences

* Critical response and literary standing during lifetime and posthumously

* Cite the source of your information on the bibliography

Born in a normal family as the oldest child, Mark Salzman experienced a childhood different from everyone else's.¬¬¬ Salzman was born on December 3 1959 as a winter baby in Greenwich, Connecticut, the northeastern of the United States. His mother was a home piano instructor and his father was a social worker. Salzman's passion for music came from his mother who persuaded him to play the cello. His father's love for studying of astronomies led him to his interest in the study of the universe. Although his family was not poor, they had regular financial problems. For example, buying a telescope for Salzman's father was half of all the money their family once had. In general, Salzman's interest of writing this book derived from his will to share his personal experiences.

One of the minor world events that influenced Salzman was the death of Bruce Lee in July 20 1973. When Salzman was a thirteen years old boy, he felt in love with Kong Fu after watching his first Kong Fu movie. Today, Salzman is living in Los Angeles with his wife, Jessica Yu, and his daughters Ava and Esme. Both Yu and Salzman went to Yale University. Yu is an award winning American Film Writer, Producer, Editor, and Director. Salzman has an interesting life of being from a crazy zany to a successful American writer.

(2) FORM, STRUCTURE, and PLOT

* How is the book organized? Length? Chapters?

* Discuss techniques such as flashbacks or dream sequences, stream of consciousness, chronological order of events, foreshadowing, parallel events, multiple, complex, or simple plot.

* How much time is covered?

* Compare and contrast beginning and ending.

Salzman began his memoir with his teenage life at school and finally adult experiences in the society. Lost in Place was organized chronologically with few flashbacks and foreshadows. There were 269 pages with a total of nineteen chapters and an epilogue at the end. Chapters were organized by the setting of the story and events happening in Salzman's life. The lengths of the chapters were fairly organized so it will not bore the readers. Salzman used foreshadowing technique when