Do Some Damage discussion

Is that what we're calling these? The lines from each chapter that Whitmer set off at the beginning of each chapter?

Sometimes authors will do: "Chapter 13. Monday, 12:37 AM" to start off. I guess this is done in thrillers, mostly. Is it supposed to add an air of suspense? Clocking-ticking-ness?

In kids' books, they'll give you a hint of what's coming in the chapter: "Chapter 19: In which our hero eats a sandwich and fights a dragon before he forgets his homework."

Does pulling out a line and setting it off to begin each chapter give the book a more literary feel? Something else?

I"m with Chris; they don't improve or take away from it, but I do find myself looking for the line as I read the chapter, sometimes surprised by the context. I wonder if Whitmer chose these or if the publisher did.

To me the obvious precursor for this technique of using a line as a chapter title is The Wire. The title of Every episode of The Wire was a quote from that episode.

I had toyed with the idea of listing all of the chapter titles in order to see what they said about the book taken as a whole but never did.

I find they have appeal only when their function reinforces the overall messages or themes of the work. As has been noted here, it gives a work a "classical" feel. I know that's how McCarthy has used it and I would imagine Ben's inclination to use them is a nod to that same theme: Coating the sordid plot in a classical form to emphasize its literary quality.

I've never really cared for them much, feeling like they're foreshadowing something that I should just find out by reading the chapter.

That doesn't happen in this one, since the lines are out of context and don't give anything away.

On the one hand it does highlight some cool lines, but on the other I found it a little distracting.

Nearly to the end, but I find in this case the epigraphs while an novel design element really don't bring anything to PIKE, especially given the short chapters.