And the Nominees Are. . . .

As you can see from the image at left, although Reverend John Norman Maclean tends to favor some members of the congregation, he has come upon some difficulties in attempting to judge them, particularly regarding his charge last week on All Hallows Eve to single out one soul from all others. Everyone, he reports, who attended the church breakfast social in costume as a character from the assigned book will, he says, most likely receive a passing grade in the class. But what to do with those who came as "nothing"?

So here's the question as he asked me to put it before you to answer in writing:

• Can you define "nothing"? If so, do. If not, continue to do nothing.
  
• Using your definition of "nothing," describe the role that "nothing" plays in one or more of the stories in A River.
• How, for instance, does "nothing" relate to Jim and the Rancher's wife and her bucket?
• Using "nothing" as your theme, create a series of questions connecting nothing to at least fifteen characters and events in the three stories.
• Be sure to frame at least some of your questions by connecting them to ethics and ecology.

Meanwhile, here are the nominees and the categories:

1. Best dressed major male character in a story.
2. Best dressed major female character in a story.
3. Best dressed minor female, character in a story.
4. Best dressed minor male, character in a story.
5. Most imaginative costume.
6. Most realistic costume.

Here below are some random images. I'm sure Trevor will want to make a website exclusively devoted to this contest. Maybe we can get the reverend's grandson, my colleague John Maclean, to judge the contest? John is the author of three books on fire: Fire on the Mountain, Fire and Ashes, and The Thirtymile Fire. Extra points for reading any one or more of the three. Jake? How about that?