Before I Go to Sleep

Christine’s journal recounts waking with no memories. After a call from Dr. Nash, she reads her journal. Again, Christine vividly remembers an incident with Ben in their old home. She recalls happily lying in bed with him until he had to catch his train. Ben whispered that he loved her, and the words sounded “forbidden and dangerous” (96). After he left, she went to her typewriter and tried to write the second chapter of her novel. Suffering from writer’s block, she went to the bookshelf and took down a copy of her first novel, For the Morning Birds.

Wondering if she did write a novel, Christine tries the computer keyboard and realizes she can touch type. She searches the house for her novel but cannot find it. She calls Dr. Nash, who confirms that her first novel was a modest commercial success. Christine was writing her second novel when she lost her memory.

When Ben returns from work, Christine says she remembers being a writer. Ben tells her that her mind is playing tricks on her. Christine reasons that Ben might be trying to protect her from the disappointment that she will never write another novel.