H

I found H was much easier to read than our previous works and I enjoyed reading it. Aside from The Sandman I had never read a work that was written through a series of letters. I liked how it started out by introducing Benjamin to us through the eyes of people who interact with him. Benjamin is clearly a troubled child and it seems as if the way he is treated by his parents troubles him even further. After reading Benjamin's letters to Elliot in the second part, and the letters Elliot writes to him, it becomes clear that there's a misunderstanding between him and his parents. They want him to to participate in the things he doesn't enjoy, and they list drama as a shunned activity. As it turns out drama is one of the things Benjamin likes. Mrs. Sherman seems like she is worried about him, sure, but she has no clue what to do about it. Where is Mr. Sherman through all of this? I'm convinced even when they call Benjamin, he doesn't speak to his father. In part 3, in a letter to his Mom, Benjamin can be quoted "Dr. Dysan said if you come with daddy next time we can make pizza bagels." It's clear that his Dad rarely visits. It seems a lot of Benjamin's problems may be due to neglect.

The alternative reality that Benjamin has created could have been something that he eventually grew out of. 12 might be a little old to be living in another spacetime, as Benjamin would say, but it might be harmful that he was forced out of it. His final few letters from Elliot are upsetting, and it's possible he is writing them like that on purpose in order to give himself a reason to faze out the Elliots. Benjamin seems a little desperate to get out of the Michaels Center and he starts complying with Dr. Dysan's tasks, such as writing letters to humans. It could be that he thinks the fazing out will be the only way to get himself out of there. The final page isn't 100% clear that the alternate reality is fully fazed out, but it could very well be Benjamin's final interaction with Elliot and Elliottown.