This was a strange story, but I liked it. The author did a crazy good job of giving a sharp, distinct image of this entire "special little snowflake" mentality our society is trying to cultivate. It's the idea that we all must be brought down so that we are equal to one another, and that we must understand no one person is better than another. The irony is interesting - by making a deliberate effort to "handicap" people, one essentially admits that some people are better than others. However, if we were to simply understand that our differences are what make us equal and really uncomparable, everyone would be more challenged to do well in their own unique area of strength.
I thought it very strange that Harrison himself was so un-likable. I mean, his whole "I am the Emperor. . ." thing was very distasteful - it almost made you glad when he was shot down. I think the author could have done a better job making us more sympathetic to Harrison. His arrogance was just grating - why couldn't he have been a little more humble, and little more confident in some ability he had, rather than just being selfish. That was it - I felt he was more arrogant than confident. I had to really consciously remember that I'm supposed to be thinking "How unfair" when the lady shot him - and recall that she was the bad guy, shooting him because of his individuality, not his annoy-ness.
But yes, other than that - I thought it an excellent story. Hazel and George were such vivid characters. One could almost see them as a very extreme version of people we ourselves know. The whole story made me reminiscent of my speech on the "Teenager Syndrome."
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