46 pages 1 hour read

Dave Eggers

Zeitoun

Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2009

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Chapters 15Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 5

Chapter 15 Summary: Fall 2008

Kathy is suffering from traumatic memory loss due to the events surrounding Hurricane Katrina and her husband’s incarceration and it is affecting her both personally and professionally. The Zeitouns are in the process of renovating their house on Dart Street. They’re tired and the house still isn’t finished. The office building is a complete loss, and they have decided to move their office to their home. Since Zeitoun’s release, they’ve lived in a number of apartments, waiting for the completion of the expanded house on Dart Street.

Zeitoun was ashamed when they returned to the city from Hunt, and the two barely spoke about the incident. Kathy took him to the hospital but there was no indication of something physically wrong with his side, confirming for Zeitoun that the pain was a physical manifestation of his sorrow. Zeitoun eventually regains his health and his strength but he will never forget the memory of what the X-ray couldn’t show: that he had suffered heartbreak and sorrow.

When the Zeitouns visit their house on Dart after Zeitoun’s release, they find that, without him there to protect the house, nothing much survived. The entire house needed to be gutted and repaired. As they are leaving, Zeitoun remembers the dogs and rushes to see what has become of them.