46 pages • 1 hour read
Mary Rand Hess, Kwame AlexanderSwing
Fiction | Novel/Book in Verse | YA | Published in 2018A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Character Analysis
Noah
Content Warning: This section references violence, death, police brutality, and systemic racism.
The novel’s protagonist, Noah, is a thoughtful and kind teenager who cares for and supports his friends and family. A lifelong fan of baseball, he halts his efforts to earn a place on the high school baseball team, coming to the realization that he does not possess the necessary skills. In this way, he contrasts with his best friend, Walt/Swing, an optimistic dreamer who refuses to be deterred by Noah’s realist logic. Unlike Walt/Swing, who is daring with a bold personality, Noah is reserved and thoughtful, preferring the closeness of his intimate circle of friends and feeling no need to be popular. He is caring and respectful to his parents, evidenced in the care he takes in choosing a birthday gift for his mother and by his reluctance to break the rules they set when they leave town, despite pressure from Walt/Swing to throw a party. Throughout, Noah remains a reliable and dedicated supporter of Walt/Swing, cheering him on in his quest to make the baseball team (despite his awareness of Walt/Swing’s lack of talent). Noah also trusts Walt/Swing and allows himself to be guided by Walt/Swing towards achieving his own goals. Noah is artistic and creative, which he expresses by writing poems and making visual art. He feels somewhat self-conscious about this interest, as evidenced by the fact that he chooses to keep his hobby a secret from everyone except his parents and Walt/Swing. Nevertheless, the impact his work has on Sam illustrates The Power of Art, Words, and Music.
One of the novel’s central conflicts is Noah’s trepidation about confessing his romantic feelings for his close, longtime friend, Sam. The two have enjoyed a comfortable companionship since a young age and each knows the other’s personality and preferences thoroughly. Noah repeatedly demonstrates his care for Sam by supporting her in any way she asks: This ranges from helping her to choose a prom dress to consoling her when she is disappointed by her boyfriend’s behavior. Noah lacks the confidence to reveal his romantic feelings to Sam, certain that she will recoil at this idea. When Walt/Swing forces Noah’s hand by secretly passing along Noah’s artwork to Sam, Noah is initially angry but forgives him after the plan seemingly works. Noah experiences overwhelming happiness when Sam welcomes a romantic relationship. Although Noah and Sam’s experimentation with being a couple is short-lived, Noah responds to the breakup with kindness and maturity despite his sadness. Sam and Walt/Swing’s friendship has a lasting impact on Noah’s life, and he is clearly deeply committed to his friends. Noah deeply mourns the death of Walt/Swing at the novel’s end, stressing the contributions Walt/Swing made to the world during his short time in it. Noah is able to process difficult feelings with thoughtfulness and acceptance.
Walt “Swing”
Noah’s best friend, Walt Disney Jones, is a lively, upbeat, and optimistic character. He is deeply passionate about his interests, his primary ones being baseball and jazz. The nickname he gives himself—“Swing”—has associations with both baseball and jazz. Walt/Swing is quirky and possesses unusual talents, such as the ability to remember the circumstances of the deaths of famous individuals. He approaches life with enthusiasm, exhibiting a carpe diem spirit. Indeed, despite his lack of athletic talent, he does not give up hope of earning a spot on the baseball team. His relentless practice at batting demonstrates his dedication and fierce determination, exemplifying Perseverance in the Pursuit of Passions. Further, he stresses to Noah and others that commitment and refusal to give up will pay off in the end, for himself and others. He is therefore elated when he finally receives an opportunity to play on the team. Although his performance is consistently lackluster, this does not diminish Walt/Swing’s joy for the game, nor his sense of pride and accomplishment at finally reaching his goal. In this way, he is an inspiration for Noah, who, throughout much of the novel, attempts to find the courage to reveal his feelings for Sam openly.
Walt/Swing relies heavily on the advice of his cousin, Floyd, and the podcast Floyd produces. Floyd too loves jazz and often speaks in a manner that resembles poetry. His influence on Walt/Swing’s speech patterns is apparent, and Walt/Swing also regards Floyd’s advice and ideas as being full of valuable wisdom. Also important in Walt/Swing’s life is his older brother Mo, who returns from active service during the course of the novel.
Walt/Swing is as impulsive as he is charismatic and is fully consumed by an obsessive admiration when he meets Divya. In Divya he finds someone who shares his passion for jazz, which Walt/Swing gradually infuses into Noah as well. His friendship and support of Noah is unwavering, and his death causes Noah real grief as he mourns the loss of both his friend and Walt/Swing’s positive spirit. His death also comments on the prevalence of police brutality and racial profiling in the US; Walt/Swing is Black, and the police shoot him when he is trying to save his brother, a traumatized veteran, from their violence.
Sam
Sam has been the close friend of both Noah and Walt/Swing since they were young children. Sam is friendly and kind, caring and supporting both Noah and Walt/Swing. She is dating Cruz, a baseball player, yet appears to confide in Noah more than in her boyfriend. She is moved by romantic gestures and disappointed that Cruz does not perform them and that he displays a lack of understanding about her. When Cruz lets her down, Sam turns to Noah to vent her frustration and to receive emotional support.
Sam is moved by the artwork sent by a secret admirer, flattered by the kind words it contains. The fact that she shows these letters, and her feelings about them, to Noah (before knowing he is the author) indicates the closeness of their friendship and the degree of trust she has in him. When Noah later reveals his authorship, Sam is not any less touched. She responds maturely in a way that prevents Noah from becoming embarrassed. Her warmth and kindness remain as their relationship shifts from friendship to a romantic one.
Sam’s difficulty expressing her feelings becomes apparent when she has second thoughts about pursuing a romantic relationship with Noah. In this, her diffidence is similar to Noah’s towards her earlier on. Instead of communicating, she avoids Noah and fails to respond to his text messages. When she is finally ready to speak with him, however, Sam is kind and mature in her interaction and lets him down kindly and honestly. She seeks to preserve their friendship, unsure whether pursuing a romantic relationship is truly what she desires. In this way, she proves to be a caring and compassionate friend whose connection to Noah is sincere and meaningful.
Mo
Moses “Mo” Jones is the older brother of Walt/Swing. When the novel begins, he is away in Afghanistan, serving with the US military. Walt/Swing admires and respects Mo and is eager for his return. Walt/Swing notes that Mo is named after Moses Fleetwood Walker, the first African American Major League Baseball player. In this way, Mo is linked to baseball—a key bond between him and Walt/Swing and perhaps the secret as to why Walt/Swing is so determined to play the sport despite overwhelming challenges. The biblical name “Moses” has associations with breaking down societal barriers and overcoming obstacles; it has particular resonance for Black Americans due to Moses’s efforts to lead the Israelites out of slavery.
However, Mo’s name proves ironic, as the novel largely depicts him as a victim of a racist society. When Mo returns from his tour of duty, it is evident to others that he is changed, and they are concerned that his mental health has been affected by his deployment. He is quiet and does not focus on others when they attempt to converse with him. Noah repeatedly describes Mo as being “not present,” noting that Mo’s attention is focused elsewhere, internally. At times Mo mutters about aspects of military service or combat, showing symptoms of PTSD. Walt/Swing, however, either cannot recognize this or refuses to acknowledge it. Mo’s mental health condition causes him to react with fear to the American flags appearing around town. It is his outburst on the baseball field, in which police officers conclude that his wielding a baseball bat means that Mo intends to cause harm, that leads to the shooting and death of Walt/Swing. As the novel closes, the future of Mo is uncertain.
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