The Good Part

In the Acknowledgments, Cousens references several films from which she took inspiration, including Big, 13 Going on 30, and Freaky Friday. Compare Cousens’s handling of time travel or life-skipping with that of other works, focusing on character arcs and themes.

What influences Lucy’s decision to go back to being 26 despite her love for Sam and Felix? What does the novel suggest about the value of friendship as compared to romance and family?

Lucy’s time travel provides many opportunities for dramatic and situational irony. What is the effect of this irony? How does it contribute to the novel’s tone and themes?