It's funny because the other day I bought a journal. I want to record my daily happenings. Even if I write a word or a sentence, I want to write everyday. This way I can remember the minuscule events that took place in my life when I reread my journal years later.
Pagnucci is writing in the now, looking back on his life. The way in which he recollects his happenings is through narrative. Throughout the narrative are lists of minor things that he remembers from the event. For instance, he lists the items he remembers in the hospital using his senses. This is what I want to accomplish in my journal. However, I want to write immediately after to encourage the best possible image.
Pagnucci writes through explanation and narrative and poetry and quotations. He uses multiple modes to let his story flow. He also grounds his story by constantly referring to the comic books in one way or another. He manages to make a circle out of his writing. He explains a story and goes right back around to the comic books.
Ondaatje's opening paragraph is long and to the eye it seems displeasing. I don't want to sit there and see this huge paragraph. It turns me off of the reading. However, once I started to read, I was impressed at how the text flowed. It was rather conversational. This is how I like to write when I am writing a narrative, especially if it is in first person. I like my words to seem as though someone is speaking them naturally and not premeditating what is going to be said. Long sentences seem over thought and short choppy sentences seem personal..to me.
The way in which Ondaatje's paragraphs are arranged are in somewhat of a block form. They are all, on average, the same size.