“My name is Will Shea. You can probably tell that I’m not from around here.”
Will Shea is the protagonist of the Con Academy story and he is always fond of introducing himself before anyone else. The author describes him as an intelligent boy who found his way to the exclusive school reserved for the elites in society. He is a con artist and he perfects his tricks by first introducing himself to people to gain their confidence. After introducing himself, he starts to fool people about his poverty background so that they can have sympathy with him and that is how he cons them money when they start helping him.
“a tiny island called Ebeye. It’s out in the middle of the Pacific, about two thousand miles southwest of Hawaii.”
Will Shea has a way of convincing people to trust him and listen to his fake stories about himself. He starts by telling people that he was born and raised in a place no one has heard of before. He describes his birthplace as a tiny island given the name Ebeye, thousands of miles away from Hawaii somewhere in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. He tells people this fake story so that they can trust him but of course there those that doubt him. For instance, living in the middle of the Pacific Ocean is not practical but Shea makes it look real and practical.
“My grandmother was Polynesian, and my mother was born there—she met my dad in medical school, and they went back to work at the public health clinic.”
The narrator is saying this statement after realizing that Andrea is staring at him. According to Shea, this statement is part of his life history, and he does whatever he can to convince his audience. However, from the beginning of this story, the author hints to the reader that Will Share is making up fake stories about his life so that he can continue with his con art activities at the school. He also explains how his mother met his father for the first time before he was born. To make the audience more sympathetic, he explains how his grandmother and parents passed away leaving him an orphan. He is in this prestigious school because the people in his village fundraised money to send him there.
