We are Okay

Book Cover

Justification

I chose We are Okay as one of my Printz Winner or Honor books. We are Okay was selected as the 2018 winner of the Printz award. This book stood out to me for a few reasons. The cover art intrigued me. It looks as if the girl on the cover is completely adrift and caught between two worlds. The book is also highly regarded in the literary community. In addition to winning the prestigious Printz award, it also was also named best book of the year or a choice selection by eight other organizations. We are Okay exemplifies excellent writing and has been recognized accordingly.

Evaluation

The first element of exceptional writing is the style and language that is used. LaCour uses other stories, artwork, novels, and their characters to serve as a point of comparison for her own protagonist, Marin. One allusion that is used throughout the novel is characters who are haunted by ghosts. Following the death of her grandfather, Marin is left completely alone. She is haunted by the ghosts of her past, her grandfather and mother who died when she was just three. Marin is drawn to characters and novels with ghosts. Jane Eyre, the Buendía family from One Hundred Years of Solitude, and the governess in the Taming of the Shrew. Like the characters she’s drawn to, Marin is plagued by ghosts. While the memories of her mother are small and fleeting, she has real memories of her grandfather. However, these memories are all called into question after his death when she discovers the secrets he had been keeping from her. Marin is adrift, alone in the world. Like Jane Eyre, she is afraid she will never truly know love.

The characters of the novel are expertly developed. One glance at the cover of the book and you see a perfect representation of how our main character feels throughout most of the novel. She’s standing on her bed in her dorm room, looking out at the sea. She’s stuck on an island in the middle of the ocean. In the story, this is exactly how Marin feels. She is in a state of loss, grief, anger, and loneliness. Even her name is derived from the Hebrew for sea of sorrow. She has pushed away her only friend, Mabel and her family, and refused to allow anyone else in beyond a surface knowledge of who she is. Everything about Mabel and her family highlight the stark contrast between Marin and her grandfather. Mabel has parents who care deeply for her, her brother, and Marin. They are invested in their well-being. Even Mabel’s name means love or loving. By contrast, Marin lost her mother at three, has never known her father, and has only her grandfather who is too wrapped up in himself to really notice Marin. He cares for her as best as he can, but it leaves a lot of room for improvement. As the plot develops, we learn more about Marin’s grandfather’s character and his inability to cope with loss. Each of the characters must deal with grief, loss, and loneliness in different ways.

The theme of grief and living with loss is pervasive throughout the novel. The allusions to characters haunted by ghosts and living with loneliness as well as the novel’s characters who are all left alone in some way. Each of the characters react differently to their grief. Marin’s grandfather was completely consumed by the grief. “Gramps set up that tree every year. He pulled out the decorations his dead wife and dead daughter bought and pretended to be a man who had lost too much and survived it. He pretended, for me, that his mind and his heart were not dark and convoluted places.He pretended that he lived in a house with me, his granddaughter, for whom he baked and often drove to school and taught important lessons about how to treat stains and save money, when really he lived in a secret room with the dead” (LaCour, 2017, p. 227-228). He was never truly able to move on after the loss of his wife and daughter. Tragically, the victim of his inability to cope was his granddaughter. Mabel is abandoned by Marin after the death of her grandfather. Marin is trying to process her feelings after learning her grandfather’s secret and shuts her out. Mabel has the benefit of a loving and supportive family who can support her through these feelings of loneliness. Marin is stuck in the middle. Paralyzed by grief, anger, and loneliness, Marin is adrift. She is at a crossroads, should she surrender to the tidal wave of grief, or accept the love and care offered by Mabel and her family. In the end, we are affirmed that through the love of others, we can all be okay, even in the face of crippling loss.

Response

(A) Moving on after the loss of a loved one is no easy task. While I have not lost a parent like Marin, I have had to bear the burden of lost family members and friends. Grief can make you feel like you’re stuck in quicksand. Inaction can cause you to slowly sink and will ultimately swallow you up if you do not act. Fortunately, I was able to seek refuge in the comfort of friends and loved ones in times of grief. I also have faith that life on this Earth is not our ultimate home. (B) The text highlighted for me the power of friendship during difficult seasons of our life. Having someone to lean on in seasons of grief and loneliness is essential. Without that support is can be difficult to recover. We see this exemplified in Marin’s grandfather. The book did an excellent job showcasing the resilient nature of the human spirit in the face of death and loss that can come with time and healing. (E) This book was beautifully done. The writing and rich use of allusion to further Marin’s character development enhanced the novel in a unique way. The inclusion of subtle references, name meanings, and allusions compound to result in a profound impact on the overall novel. LaCour did a superb job capturing the feeling of loss and loneliness throughout the book.

Conclusion

It should come as no surprise why Nina LaCour’s novel has garnered so much praise. Beautiful and heartbreaking, it is a tour de force. This book would make an excellent addition to any high school library. Teenagers wading through loss, grief, and loneliness will resonate with the characters of this novel. This book would be appropriate for high school students and older. The tone of the story is dark and younger readers may not be ready for the subject matter.

APA Citation

LaCour, N. (2017). We are okay. New York: Penguin Random House.