Problem 1: Lethem begins Number 18, "The movie itself, right." Is this essay about Star Wars at all? If so, how? If not, what is it really about?
Problem 2: How does Christman approach the subject of her grief? What are the effects of writing about it in this way? Would representing it and discussing it more directly have been more or less effective for you?
Problem 3: While neither Lethem nor Margalit hide their feelings about the mother's deaths in these essays, they do deal with explicit statements about grief and mourning. How would you characterize their individual approach regarding death? Do they seem appropriate to the circumstances they write about, or to the kind of thing they are writing? Do you find one more congenial?
Use specific textual evidence to support your answer.