Chapter 30: Epilogue. The Call Out
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
The epilogue opens on Memorial Day weekend 1936 with two newly arrived Jewish refugee brothers, Hirshel and Yigel Koffler, working as brakemen on a Pennsylvania Railroad freight train. Their union boss, fellow Jewish immigrant Uri Guzinski, instructs them in Yiddish to transport “Negroes” on their empty boxcar from Pennhurst to Berwyn and hand them over to a “Pullman.” The Kofflers carry out the order, transporting a tall Black man (Nate) and a weeping child (Dodo) to two impeccably dressed Pullman porters waiting at the Berwyn yard. The porters hand the brothers an envelope containing forty dollars and a note signed “M. Skrup” offering free shoes.
The narrative then reveals the clandestine chain that made the escape possible: Isaac (Moshe’s cousin) provided money, which passed through Bernice, Fatty, Addie, Nate, and Paper, who enlisted two Pullman porter friends. Uri arranged the train transfer. From Berwyn, Nate and Dodo travel to Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station and then board a first-class Pullman sleeper, the General Lee, bound for Charleston, South Carolina—the Low Country where Nate was born.
Nate believes he will never see his wife Addie again and accepts that he may be the last of his family line, the Loves. The epilogue then jumps forward to Dodo’s adult life. The drugs and trauma of Pennhurst gradually erase most of his memories, but he retains the image of a single white finger thrust out in the dark—the finger of his friend, who called him “Monkey Pants.” Dodo becomes Nate Love II, a farmer, husband, and father of five children. He dies on June 22, 1972, the same day Hurricane Agnes devastates Pottstown and the day after Malachi the Magician vanishes. Surrounded by his family, his last words are “Thank you, Monkey Pants.”
The chapter concludes with the author’s acknowledgments, which explain that the novel began as a tribute to Sy Friend, the retired director of a camp for disabled children in Pennsylvania. McBride describes his own summers working at that camp and emphasizes Sy’s lessons of inclusivity, love, and equality.
Key Events
- The Koffler brothers follow Uri’s instructions to transport Nate and Dodo on the Tanker Toad freight train from Pennhurst to Berwyn.
- At Berwyn, two Pullman porters take custody of Nate and Dodo, handing the brothers an envelope with money and a note from M. Skrup (Marv Skrupskelis).
- The chain of helpers is revealed: Isaac, Bernice, Fatty, Addie, Nate, Paper, and the porters, all coordinated by Uri.
- Nate and Dodo board a first-class Pullman sleeper to Charleston, South Carolina.
- Nate resolves that he will never see Addie again and believes he is the last of the Loves.
- Dodo’s memory of Pennhurst fades, but he never forgets the finger of “Monkey Pants” held out in the dark.
- Dodo grows up as Nate Love II on a South Carolina farm, marries, raises five children, and lives a full life.
- His death coincides with Hurricane Agnes and the disappearance of Malachi the Magician.
- Dodo’s final words are “Thank you, Monkey Pants.”
- The author’s acknowledgments trace the novel’s inspiration to Sy Friend and the camp for disabled children.
Character Development
Nate (the “tall, lanky Negro”): In the epilogue, Nate is revealed to be the escape organizer. He selflessly helps Dodo get to safety while accepting his own permanent separation from Addie. He embodies sacrifice and quiet heroism.
Dodo / Nate Love II: Dodo transitions from a traumatized, drugged child to a thriving adult. His amnesia about Pennhurst is a form of healing, but he retains the core memory of his friend’s solidarity. His final words tie back to that bond.
The Koffler brothers (Hirshel and Yigel): Newly arrived Jewish refugees, they represent the innocence of immigrants thrust into a covert operation they do not fully understand. Their compliance underscores the trust within the community.
Addie: Though absent in the scene, her role in the chain—passing money through Nate—highlights her commitment to the escape even at the cost of losing her husband.
Paper and the Pullman porters: These minor characters become vital nodes in the escape network, demonstrating the power of the Black railroad worker community.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
Community as a rescue network: The epilogue explicitly maps the multi-ethnic, multi-generational chain that saves Dodo—Jews, Blacks, and others cooperating across racial and class lines.
Memory and forgetting: Dodo’s deliberate amnesia about Pennhurst contrasts with his indelible memory of “Monkey Pants.” The finger becomes a symbol of unwavering friendship and light in darkness.
The finger in the dark: A motif carried from earlier chapters, the finger represents solidarity, guidance, and the persistence of love despite trauma.
The Call Out: The title refers to Dodo’s final utterance—“Thank you, Monkey Pants.” It is a call across time and space, addressed to a friend who entered the “land where the lame walked and the blind could see.”
Hurricane Agnes: The natural disaster that wipes Pottstown coinciding with Dodo’s death symbolically erases the town’s past while Dodo’s new life is already established elsewhere.
Camp Chona and Sy Friend: The author’s acknowledgments extend the theme of inclusive care beyond the novel’s fiction, grounding the story in real-world experiences of disability and equality.
Why This Chapter Matters
The epilogue serves as the novel’s emotional and thematic resolution. It confirms that Dodo escaped and flourished, validating the risks taken by the Chicken Hill community. It also reveals the web of cooperation—Jews, Black porters, and others—that made the escape possible, reinforcing the novel’s central message about solidarity across differences. The final call-out to “Monkey Pants” reconnects Dodo to his childhood friend and unites the two central threads of the story: the love that saves and the love that remembers. The acknowledgments connect the fictional camp to the real-life Variety Club Camp, affirming the novel’s roots in lived experience and its commitment to disability justice.
Study Questions & Answers
1. How do the Koffler brothers become involved in the escape, and what does their role reveal about the immigrant community?
Answer: The Koffler brothers, newly arrived Jewish refugees, are instructed by fellow Jewish union boss Uri Guzinski to transport Nate and Dodo on their freight train. They obey without fully understanding the operation, revealing a trust network among Jewish immigrants built on shared language (Yiddish) and mutual aid. Their involvement shows that the escape relied on people who were themselves newcomers yet willing to help others.
2. What does the chain of helpers—from Isaac to the Pullman porters—tell us about the novel’s view of community?
Answer: The chain demonstrates that effective resistance and rescue require broad, cross-community cooperation. Money and information flow through Jewish figures (Isaac, Moshe, Marv), Black residents (Bernice, Fatty, Addie, Nate, Paper), and Black railroad workers (the porters). No single group acts alone; the novel posits that justice is achieved through alliances of the marginalized.
3. What is the significance of Dodo’s final words, “Thank you, Monkey Pants”?
Answer: The phrase is Dodo’s only preserved memory from his trauma-ridden childhood. “Monkey Pants” is the nickname of the friend who held a finger out in the dark throughout a night of terror. Dodo’s gratitude at the moment of death indicates that the friendship was the most meaningful and healing force in his life. It also completes the thematic arc of loyalty and love overcoming inhumanity.