comment on language /style

Close to Shore contains an unusual mixture of styles. Although the book chronicles a true life event, there are many lyrical almost poetic elements in the telling of the story, creating a blend between fiction and non-fiction. For example, the very first sentences of the book are, "The smell of the sea pulled him east. The Atlantic spread before him like a pool of diamonds, liquefied" (p. 1). This first chapter, titled "Last Man in the Water," provides no names or location about this man who takes a swim in the ocean. Knowing the subject of the book, the reader read can conclude with some certainty that the man was destined to become one of the shark's victims. However, the identity of the man is not revealed until several chapters into the book.