The Composition Quotes

“When he asks his parents about what happened, he learns that Daniel’s father, as well as his own parents, are against the government dictatorship. ”

“The next day, a man in uniform named Captain Romo enters Pedro’s classroom, asking all the children to write a composition as part of a contest called ‘What my Family Does at Night.”

His parents smile after reading this, and his father says, “Well, we’d better buy a chess set.” Subtle account of how children can take action against something with which they disagree.

“This children’s book about a boy named Pedro who lives with his mother and father in an unnamed country under a dictatorship.”

At the end, Pedro’s composition is revealed through his parents reading it. He describes a very boring, and blatantly false story of what his family does at night.

“While he is playing soccer one day, Pedro witnesses his friend Daniel’s father, the owner of the local grocery store, being taken away by soldiers.”

Every day after work Pedro’s parents and neighbors sit around the radio in his home listening to broadcasts from a “long way away.”

“Pedro does not understand why the adults are so interested in listening to the radio, and goes on with his daily life, going to school and playing soccer with his friends. ”

“I go out and play soccer…we sit at the table and I eat…after supper my father and mother sit on the sofa and play chess and I do my homework.

Pedro discusses the paper with his classmate Juan, asking him if he is against the dictatorship. Juan replies with “Of course I am…they took my father away up north.”