Black Swan Green: Chapter 3 Summary & Analysis

Uncle Brian and Aunt Alice Lamb come to visit Jason and his family. Their son, Hugo, is two years older than Jason, and Jason has always felt that his cousin Hugo is lucky, so much so that even the name “Hugo” becomes a blessing instead of a curse. They also have two other sons with them, Alex and Nigel. Jason gets a little annoyed about having to help unload almost everything in his relatives’ car while the adults talk about things like traffic.

Jason notice that everything in the house gets a little fancier when Uncle Brian and Aunt Alice come to visit, with salt and pepper for example suddenly becoming “condiments.” At dinner, Brian and Alice brag about the things Nigel and Alex are doing at school. Hugo, meanwhile, has done well on the canoeing team. Jason’s mum tries to brag that he won a library poetry prize, but Jason just gets embarrassed.

Uncle Brian teases Jason’s mum for having a Datsun, a Japanese car, believing that foreign cars are junk. Julia points out that Brian’s Nikon camera is Japanese. Brian just accuses the Japanese of taking other people’s technology, shrinking it, then selling it back. Jason’s mum defends the Datsun, but Brian remains adamant.

After dinner, the family disperses, and Jason goes to his room. He goes to the bathroom and realizes that he can overhear his mum and Aunt Alice talking. Alice is apologizing for Uncle Brian’s behavior at dinner. They talk about their children, including how Jason is still “painfully quiet.” Aunt Alice brings up the mysterious phone calls that Jason’s Dad has been getting. Jason’s mum references an “incident” that happened with her husband five-and-a-half years ago, but she is hoping that the current phone calls are just a wrong number.

Aunt Alice suggests that with Julia leaving home soon, Jason’s mum should find new things to do, like potentially going back to work. Jason’s mum isn’t interested, and she isn’t optimistic about her prospects anyway due to the recession. At last, Jason flushes and leaves.

Jason plays a darts game called Round the Clock with Hugo and Nigel. Nigel throws poorly, and Jason and Hugo make fun of him until he storms off. Hugo suggests they place a bet on the game and although Jason is reluctant, he agrees to go along with it. At first, Jason throws well and seems to be winning. Just as the luck turns and Jason throws poorly while Hugo improves, Aunt Alice interrupts to complain that Nigel has been crying. Hugo says that Nigel stormed off on his own and is welcome to come back, but Aunt Alice insists that Hugo and Jason have to leave to grab coffee so that Uncle Brian has it in the morning.

Hugo and Jason end up at an arcade, where Hugo’s score in Asteroids impresses a local landlord named Isaac Pye and Jason’s classmates Grant Burch and Neal Brose. Hugo enters his name in the high score as JHC for Jesus H. Christ. An impressed Grant offers Hugo a cigarette. Jason thinks that Hugo doesn’t actually smoke, but he knows he’ll lose reputation by refusing a cigarette. Hugo claims that he doesn’t like the brand Grant offered, only smoking Lambert Butlers. Jason memorizes this excuse to use later.

Hugo and Jason make it to the store to buy coffee. Kate Alfrick, Julia’s best friend, comes into the store to buy wine, having just recently turned 18. Kate and Hugo start to talk, with Kate saying she heard he was in town and Hugo being amazed that someone knows that after only three hours. Jason explains that Julia just recently left for Kate’s house to study. Hugo says he hopes to see Kate again before he leaves.

While Mr. Rhydd, the shopkeeper is helping Hugo and Jason by going up a ladder, Hugo secretly steals a pack of Lambert Butler cigarettes. Later, after they leave, Jason asks Hugo why he stole the cigarettes, especially since his family is relatively wealthy. Hugo says he likes the thrill of stealing. He doesn’t mind the negative health effects of cigarettes, since he plans to be dead before they’d kick in anyway.

Hugo wants to teach Jason how to smoke. Jason asks where he managed to steal matches from and is surprised to learn that Hugo took them from Grant Burch, with Hugo feeling pleased that Grant would probably never suspect him. When Jason refuses the cigarette, saying “not today,” Hugo is disappointed and says that Jason needs to hear some hard truths. He rants about how even though cigarettes are “cancer sticks” another type of cancer is the “not today” attitude that Jason and so many others have. He thinks it makes people blindly obedient to authority.

At last, Jason agrees to smoke, and Hugo shows him how to inhale and exhale. Jason awkwardly follows directions. They are near the lake, and Hugo comments that he finds it unimpressive. Jason admits that Black Swan Green doesn't actually have any swans in it. He says he used to like playing British Bulldogs on the lake until he learned how many children have drowned in it. Hugo says he doesn’t blame them for trying to get out of Black Swan Green. Jason vomits from smoking and feels embarrassed, but Hugo just laughs.