Rewrite the following passage so that instead of direct speech (quotes) it includes indirect, or reported, speech. The first sentence has been done for you as an example.

“These are what Alex used to drink,” says Westerberg with a frown, swirling the ice in his White Russian. “He used to sit right there at the end of the bar and tell us these amazing stories of his travels. He could talk for hours. A lot of folks here in town got pretty attached to old Alex. Kind of a strange deal what happened to him.”

Westerberg, frowning, swirls the ice in his White Russian and tells me that Alex used to order the same drink.

Why do you think the author, Jon Krakauer, chose to use direct rather than indirect speech in the original text?