Throughout my second reading of this book, I think I am focusing more about the implications of Grant's narration rather than the plot of the book which I was fully entangled in upon my first reading.
This time, I have had one question echoing in my head as I reread the novel:
'What if he wasn't in the wrong place at the wrong time?"
While the book follows Grant's life and the reader only gets a small glimpse at Jefferson from the few visits at the jail that Grant narrates, I always think about this question. There are three particular times when Jefferson and the life he would have led interrupt my reading with daydreams: Grant teaching at the school, Grant and Vivian at the Rainbow Club, and Grant's interactions with his aunt.
When Grant teaches at the school I can't help but think about Jefferson being right there not too long ago probably longing to fit in with Brother and Bear. I imagine that he was curious and also a little bit oblivious, to the point that he didn't feel that his friends could ever cause real danger. They probably rebelled and played tricks on Grant, resulting in the occasional slap on the head.
When Grant meets Vivian at the Rainbow Club I imagine Jefferson running off to town to meet a city girl who he has fallen madly in love with. She brings out the best in him and they eventually get married and maybe even move to the city where Jefferson works a blue collar job, but has a beautiful family and is happy.
When Grant interacts with his aunt I think about Emma and how much pain she's had throughout the book and how different it would be if Jefferson just wasn't there. Emma and Jefferson would probably have a relationship close to Grant and his aunt. An adventurous kid who dreams of the big city but always comes home because in the end there is no one he loves more than his Aunt (or in this case Miss Emma).
While I realize that if my day dreams were true then the book would lose its point, I think it never hurts to wonder what if Jefferson's life turned out different? Would he still be the man he becomes by the end of the book?
I think that these scenarios are important. They highlight the unfairness of what happened to Jefferson. He was in the wrong place at the wrong time for the span of a few minutes, and his life was changed. He missed out on life because there was no justice.
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