Love and Other Words

The Prologue introduces one of the book’s main themes, The Power of Relationships to Heal, and the way two people in love forge their own language. Both of Macy’s parents are immigrants and very different in appearance. She describes them as “Danish big and Brazilian petite” (9). Maybe because of their language barrier, her parents create their own language, one that is possibly nonverbal. Throughout the novel Macy’s dad shows himself to be quiet, expressing his feelings through looks and sharing an unspoken understanding with his daughter. They too share a nonverbal communication style that they both understand but that remains private and mysterious to others, including Elliot.

Macy also learns from her parents that love can’t be anything but “all-consuming.” She observes this from the way her parents love one another. After her mother’s death, she knows her father will never remarry. Later, Elliot will mirror this steadfastness. Unlike Duncan, Elliot will try to date other people once Macy stops speaking to him, but he will not be able to get over her. After reconnecting with Macy again, he will immediately leave his girlfriend because he knows that he can’t give his all to her. He will prove that he shares Macy and Duncan’s view that love is all-consuming and that once a person falls deeply for another, they cannot be satisfied with anyone else.

The downside of sharing such a deep connection is that when the beloved person dies, the all-consuming love turns to all-consuming grief. When her mother dies, Macy says, “It felt like I was drowning in all the love I still had that could never be given. It filled me up, choked me like a rag doused in kerosene, spilled out in tears and screams and in heavy, pulsing silence” (9). Macy’s leftover love manifests in pain, and, importantly, in silence. Like her dad, Macy develops a tendency to become quiet. Unlike her dad, she does not effectively communicate her feelings nonverbally. She tries to protect herself by not saying anything.

The Prologue explains Macy’s expectations about her romantic life and the dilemma she will have in forming a relationship. She wants a partner to envelop her in a love that is abundant and special and in which she and a partner will share their own language. At the same time, the experience of losing her mother makes Macy afraid to accept such love. She has already been consumed by love-turned-grief over her mother’s passing, and she will need a love that is completely steadfast and reliable to help her overcome her fear of loss.

The rules Macy’s mother leaves for Duncan provide the catalysts that will lead to Macy’s psychological development. Macy’s mother tells Duncan to “spoil her with books” (9), which will instill in Macy a lifelong desire to read. Later, Macy discloses that her mother wanted to open a bookstore. This helps explain why she developed such an emotional association with books and why a boy who also loves words helps fill the emotional void left by her mother. Macy’s mother also suggests that Duncan take Macy away from her regular life, which leads to him buying the house next to Elliot’s.