In these excerpts, the author chooses to show the recent past and then the present, before
going back to the beginning of the relationship, and sharing details of the distant past. What
is the effect of that choice?

5. Read the excerpts from Passage 1.

“But his mom insisted he couldn’t be rude to such an old friend. ‘Don’t be so sure it will go
badly,’ his mom said. ‘You don’t know what Celeste is like these days. You don’t have to be
so negative.’ So here he was, waiting. This was going to be incredibly awkward. Plus, all his
friends had gone to this awesome film festival downtown, and he had to skip it. He checked
the time on the big station clock. His friends were in the midst of watching his favorite
classic animated film. It was hardly ever shown in theaters anymore. Instead, he was waiting
for someone he hadn’t seen in years. What a waste of time.” (paragraph 1)

“Celeste and Lonnie had been next-door neighbors since the two had come home from the
same hospital as infants. They played together as toddlers, went to the same preschool, and
even played in Little League together. Then Celeste moved to California.” (paragraph 2)

In these excerpts, the author chooses to show the recent past and then the present, before
going back to the beginning of the relationship, and sharing details of the distant past. What
is the effect of that choice?

It creates effective pacing, allowing the author to surprise the reader as the reader travels further and further back into the story’s past.

It effectively builds suspense, hinting to readers that Lonnie will make an important decision about his friendship with Celeste

It allows the author to get the reader interested in Lonnie’s present predicament before the author has fully filled in all the background information.

It effectively builds to a climax, showing readers that the truth of the present situation must be found in the past..