Why do the children in the neighborhood avoid the Professor, and why do few local residents shop in his store?

The Professor, the man who owns the A - Z store on Orchard Avenue, is a rather strange person. Most people don't know what to make of him. He keeps his shop dusty and disorganized, and he doesn't engage in conversation with the few customers he gets. In fact, people in the neighborhood don't know much about him—not even why he is called the Professor. In addition, his looks are not very inviting. He has...

The Professor, the man who owns the A - Z store on Orchard Avenue, is a rather strange person. Most people don't know what to make of him. He keeps his shop dusty and disorganized, and he doesn't engage in conversation with the few customers he gets. In fact, people in the neighborhood don't know much about him—not even why he is called the Professor. In addition, his looks are not very inviting. He has a scraggly beard and deep, expressionless eyes. The children find him scary, so they cross the street rather than pass near him when he is standing in his doorway. For customers, it is quite uncomfortable to shop at his store, not just because of the disorganized jumble of merchandise, but also because the Professor has a way of staring at people without speaking that makes people feel uncomfortable. When each of the unsolved murders occurs in the neighborhood, people are suspicious of the Professor, because they know so little about him and because he hasn't created relationships in the community. Thus, the Professor is caught in a cycle of isolation. His unfriendly ways cause people to be unfriendly toward him.