Strange. If the relationship between the characters of Grandpa and Grandma could be described in one word, it would be strange. On the other hand, Jonathan Safran Foer's novel, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a brilliant example of all that is unconventional, exploring the nuances of grief through multiple and diverse perspectives, each with a unique approach that attempts to achieve recovery and comfort. The relationship between grandfather and grandmother is an example of one such attempt at recovery, an attempt that desperately seeks to reconcile past traumas, but ultimately acts as a futile effort that hides more pain and denial. To delve deeper into the relationship between grandfather and grandmother, an understanding of their past is necessary. Both grandfather and grandmother have harrowing experiences of the bombing of Dresden; however, each has a distinct response that initiates certain changes within itself. The grandfather's narrative recounts Anna's desperate search and rescue, which ultimately ends in failure, disappointment, and grief. This later affects the grandfather, creating “an inability to let go of unimportant things [and] an inability to hold on to important things” (132). This inability to come to terms with his past later translates into the grandfather's relationship with the grandmother. His constant search for reconciliation since that night in Dresden clearly hinders his ability to re-establish a true romantic love life with his grandmother. This then inhibits his ability to successfully move forward and recover from Anna's death. On the other hand, the grandmother's situation reveals a different form of trauma. His life in Dresden is largely centered around his sister Anna. The sudden loss of Anna by her grandmother on the night of the attack and subsequently the choice to leave her father behind... middle of paper... the existence of binary restrictions prevents the relationship from developing. Grandpa and Grandma are stuck in an interstitial space, a rope that won't move in a game of tug of war. In questioning whether their relationship is something or nothing, the grandfather responds, "'Something...but I knew, in the most guarded part of my heart, the truth" (111). In contrast, the grandmother tries to create a relationship that is “something.” This creates a connection that is both something and nothing at the same time. This can be best explained by comparing this something-nothing relationship to an act of “bouncing.” Both Grandpa and Grandma try to overcome their past relationships by being together. But like many rebound relationships, they are usually merely physical and short-lived. By using each other as a healing method, they only seem to cause further harm to themselves.