Hole in My Life Questions

How did Jack's childhood affect his goal of wanting to go to college?
Jack’s childhood was affected greatly by constantly having to move due to his father’s job and was never able to get settled down and put priorities in order. Jack’s family also had a hard time raising enough money to support the entire family so Jack was forced to begin working at a relatively young age. All of this led to Jack not being able to focus on his studies and continue to a higher education.
On page 28, Jack says, "And if not a writer, I wasn't sure what I might do, but I certainly had no interest in becoming a criminal." Did Jack's school and home life make him more likely to become a criminal or a writer? Why?

Unfortunately, no matter how much Jack wanted to or tried to become a writer his life just wasn’t on that pathway. He was never able to really concentrate on becoming a writer and following his dreams. Instead he had to work and try to support himself throughout the years and he was willing to do what ever it takes, even if it includes breaking the law and going against his morals and ethics. He was able to do this because he never truly had parental guidance and was able to do whatever he wanted whenever he wanted.If Jack wasn't desperate to go to college, do you think he would have become a part of the hashish smuggling operation?

Jack’s plan was never to get incorporated with the harmful and wrong business of smuggling. He became incorporated with this operation because of his drive to go to college and follow his dream of becoming a writer and this was a quick fix to his money issue. Jack had a decent life without this operation and was making ends meat. He did not need this, but because of him wanting to go to college so much he seized the opportunity.Was Jack's prison sentence fair?

Jack’s sentence wasn’t as much fair, as it was lucky. Had Jack been older and not applied to a college he could have easily gotten an extremely long prison sentence. Especially considering the circumstances of how large the drug bust was and his part of it, his sentence was more than fair.How does Jack's love of books help save him in prison? What about out ofprison?

Books were very important in Jack’s life. In prison, Jack was able to escape his harsh reality and get lost in the authors thoughts. He was also able to use them as journals by jotting down his ideas and thoughts between lines and in the margins. Out side of prison, Jack was able to depict the script of the books and learn many life lessons that would be helpful to him.
Do you think Jack would have become a successful writer if he had served his prison term in the general population rather than in his private hospital cell?
I do not believe that Jack would have achieved the great feat of becoming a successful writer in the general population. In his private cell he was able to really concentrate and focus upon his readings. This led him to teach himself how to become a better writer by comparing and studying different authors styles. In a public cell there would have been many distractions and his cellmate may not have taken kindly to Jack reading a lot.
Were Jack's unflinching descriptions of prison life necessary to the story? Why or why not?
The descriptions Jack was able to give the reader were very necessary and an important part to the story. Without these descriptions the reader would not be able to really get into the story and get locked into it. I believe it is also his way of telling the readers not to be like him, and take the same path that he did because prison is no joke and horrible things do in fact happen behind those bars.
What kinds of clues do the chapter titles provide? How does Jack signal the reader ahead of time about what will occur in the chapter?
The chapter titles are very little clues that give a small hints on what may happen in the following chapter. Generally, these clues are where something maybe take place or an object that is in the chapter.
The book is divided into three sections. Why do you think the author decided to separate parts of the story?
The book is divided into three sections to symbolize three sections of his life. The first is his childhood and before the smuggling operation. The second is about his experience during the smuggling operation. The third is about his trial and his life during and after the prison sentence.
Jack claims that his becoming involved in the smuggling ring was "a mistake." Do you think "mistake" is the right word for the situation? By using the word "mistake," does Jack make you feel more or less confident that he is sorry for what he did?

I do not believe “mistake” is the right word to use for this situation. Jack’s entrance and involvement in the smuggling ring seems to have really changed his life and he does not seem like he is truly sorry and really regrets the decision he made. This does not make me have much confidence in his sorrow.