Like a Punch In the Gut (Simile)
In the opening chapter of Ground Zero, Brandon accompanies his father, Leo, to work at the World Trade Center because he has been suspended from school. Leo tries to talk to Brandon about why he fought a fellow student. Gratz writes: "The disappointment in his father’s voice was like a punch in the gut, and Brandon felt tears come to his eyes." In this simile, Gratz emphasizes the pain of sensing his father's disappointment by likening the intangible emotion to a physical punch to Brandon's stomach.
Preserve It In Amber (Metaphor)
When Reshmina contemplates the different paths she and her twin brother are heading down as they reach maturity, she longs to go back in time "to those days when she and Pasoon had chased each other in the hills and gone swimming in the deepest part of the river." As Reshmina and Pasoon briefly play like they used to, Gratz writes that "Reshmina wished she could capture this moment in a jar. Preserve it in amber." In this metaphor, Gratz illustrates Reshmina's wish to capture the fleeting moment by speaking of it as though it could be fossilized in amber—petrified tree sap that can preserve insects for millions of years.
Wore Her Sadness Like a Chador (Simile)
When the Taliban lure the ANA and the Americans to Reshmina's village, Anaa, Reshmina's grandmother, lists the family members who were casualties of war. Afterward, she "closed her eyes again and sighed. She wore her sadness like a chador." In this simile, Gratz emphasizes the way in which Reshmina's grandmother appears to be enveloped in her grief by likening the sadness to a garment that covers her face.
Every Skater Ate Pavement (Metaphor)
While attempting to reach his father at the top of the North Tower, Brandon nearly becomes discouraged by the mounds of broken drywall blocking his way up the stairs which make him repeatedly fall down. However, he draws on his experience as a skateboarder to gather the energy to keep going. Gratz writes: "You always crashed, even when you got good at skateboarding. That was just part of it. Every skater ate pavement. You learned how to fall." In this metaphor, Gratz refers to the common experience of falling when riding a skateboard known as "eating pavement." While no skateboarder is actually eating the concrete or asphalt they fall on, their sudden impacts bring them into uncomfortably intimate contact with the ground.
Water For Brains (Metaphor)
Once Reshmina catches up to her brother, who has fled to the village to tell the Taliban about his family harboring an American soldier, she shouts, "I can’t believe you really left to join the Taliban! You have water for brains!" In this metaphor, Reshmina highlights her brother's lack of intelligence by saying he has water in his skull where he ought to have a brain.
