The Keeper of Stars

The point of view shifts to a third-person narrator, and the setting shifts back in time to May of 1950. On Douglas Lake, in East Tennessee, Jack works to get his boat’s engine working before a storm hits. He is successful, and he and his passenger, George Duncan, are safely inside a shack on a mainland dock when the storm arrives. After they drink a beer together, George offers Jack a second beer, but Jack refuses, not wanting the older man to get into trouble for giving it to him. They talk about Jack’s plan to save enough money to buy his dream house. George shares his own opinion that ordinary people like them are not destined to have fancy things like a house on the hill, but Jack is determined to keep trying. George, Jack’s boss at a tourist ferry service, thanks Jack for staying on to work through the summer, saying that he does not think he could run his business without Jack. In turn, Jack expresses gratitude for not having to work in the mill like many of his friends.

When Jack arrives home, his mother asks whether he was caught out in the squall. When he mentions that they just made it back in time, his mother, Helen, scolds him, suspecting that he was pranking George by pretending to have engine trouble. Helen serves a simple meal of biscuits, honey, and fried bologna. She says grace, and then she begins eating—but Jack picks at his food, tired of the fatty meat. Helen refuses his offer to help buy groceries, however, saying that he should keep saving his money for his dream house. He asks whether he can at least use some leftover paint that George has offered him to paint the kitchen for her, and she agrees. After dinner, Jack says his prayers and writes in his journal. Addressing the entry to “Lewis,” he compares the afternoon’s storm to the Rapture and expresses remorse for playing the engine-trouble joke on George. He expresses hope that he can catch some fish tomorrow so that he and his mother can have a break from bologna and then signs off.

In the morning, George lets Jack know that they will be making only two ferry runs today and that Jack can take one of George’s boats to go fishing once they are done. He offers Jack some breakfast and the use of his own supply of fishing worms, as well. Jack tells George that when he is older, he might want to run a fishing guide service for tourists. Later in the day, just as Jack is about to cast off for the second ferry run, a beautiful young woman hurries toward the boat, calling to him to wait for her. Although the boat is already full, she offers to pay extra, and George tells Jack to make room. 

The young woman introduces herself as Elizabeth “Ellie” Spencer. Jack entertains the tourists with tales of the Native American history of the area. When they land on an island, he persuades Ellie to wear a pair of his waders instead of her expensive shoes. Later, she thanks him for the waders but also tries to demand a refund because she did not find any Native artifacts on the island. Jack refuses politely but offers to take her to another place where arrowheads are more plentiful. She says that she will think about it. He offers to teach her to fish that afternoon, but she tells him that her ride has already arrived. That night, Jack writes in his journal, again addressing his entry to Lewis. He says that he has met an “angel” and that it feels like his life is finally about to begin (26).

The following day, Ellie returns to the docks. She tells Jack that she is staying with her aunt in Sims Chapel for a few months. When she points out where she is staying—the house on the hill that Jack is obsessed with—he realizes that her aunt is Clara Sutton, a well-known figure in Sims Chapel. Ellie’s mother—Clara’s sister—was originally from a small Tennessee town, but Ellie’s family now lives in Ohio, her father’s home state. When Ellie asks what Jack does for fun, he tells her that most of his time is taken up working and helping his mother. She surprises him by asking whether he has time right now to take her to look for arrowheads. 

When they are on the water, a storm rolls in. Ellie and Jack take shelter in the same shack where Jack and George waited out the storm just two days previously. Jack asks if his way of life seems strange to her; she momentarily takes offense, thinking that he is calling her stuck up, but when she realizes her mistake, she softens and tells him that his way of life is “nice in its own way” (31). Ellie tells him about her life in Upper Arlington, near Columbus, and her parents’ high expectations and never-ending quest for more social status. Ellie is a freshman astronomy student at Indiana University. Jack is surprised to find that Ellie treats him as an equal, despite the differences in their backgrounds. Ellie asks about Jack’s family, and he tells her that his mother works for a produce business and that his father died in World War II. When the storm finally blows past, the two agree that they will meet another day and resume their quest to find Ellie some arrowheads.

When Ellie enters her aunt’s kitchen, Clara mentions having seen her with Jack and tells Ellie that he is a fine young man who has had a difficult life. Clara mentions that Ellie’s mother called to ask Clara to arrange an algebra tutor for Ellie, who received an A- in the subject. As Clara explains that she has asked Sara Coffee, a math major, to tutor Ellie, Ellie feels as if her mother is still controlling her life from 300 miles away. Clara reassures Ellie that most young women Ellie’s age fight with their mothers. 

Feeling better, Ellie accepts some blackberry cobbler and ice cream. Clara suggests that they plan a day trip to Knoxville to shop and see a movie. Delighted, Ellie tells Clara that she was once worried that she would have nothing to do in Sims Chapel, but now—with Jack’s and Clara’s company—she feels right at home. Clara tells her that once she “[gets] a taste of this life—the water, the air, [the] feeling of being free” (38), it will be hard to walk away from it. This, along with two decades of memories, is why Clara herself stayed after her husband, Bill, died. When Ellie tells Clara that she admires Clara’s strength, Clara returns the compliment, saying that she thinks Ellie is even stronger.

It rains for two days. Jack uses the time off to paint the kitchen and daydream about Ellie. When he asks his mother about how she felt when she was first getting to know his father, she asks whether his question has something to do with the young woman she saw him with two days before. He asks whether his mother would approve of him spending time with Ellie, and she says it is fine but that he must promise that he won’t have sex with Ellie since they cannot afford to feed more people. She cautions him about falling in love with Ellie, who is only in town for the summer, because she believes that once a person gives away their heart, it cannot be taken back. When the storm finally passes, Jack and Ellie go fishing together. After Jack’s expert instruction, Ellie lands a huge bass that Jack tells her lives near the bottom of a particular stump. She lets the fish go rather than killing it.

Jack and Ellie continue to spend time together. He asks Ellie whether she has a boyfriend at home. She says that she does not and asks whether he and Sara Coffee are more than friends because Sara talks about Jack a lot. Jack assures her that he and Sara are not romantically involved. On another day, she tells him that getting to know him has convinced her that most of what Northerners think about Southerners is wrong. He tells her that the reverse is also true and that he sees now that Northerners are not necessarily stuck up. Later that night, she tells him that he is handsome, and they hold hands. Jack wants to kiss her and tell her how he feels, but his nerve fails him.

One morning before work, Jack asks George for advice about Ellie. George tells Jack to listen to Ellie carefully when she talks and get Ellie an unexpected present to encourage any attraction she might feel. On Sunday, Jack approaches Ellie after church and asks her if she would like to go looking for arrowheads. Jack takes her out to Parrott Island. Along the way, he points out a flock of mockingbirds. He explains that mockingbirds mate for life, finding their way back to one another even after being separated for years. 

When they land on the island, Ellie confesses that she has always wanted to get married on a beautiful island like Parrott Island, at night, under the stars. She points out how the branches of an old beech tree form a natural arbor and imagines it covered with flowers; she grabs Jack’s hands and playfully pretends that they are exchanging vows there. At the conclusion of the pretend ceremony, Jack finally kisses Ellie. Jack spots an arrowhead and gives it to Ellie, remembering George’s advice about an unexpected gift. He tells her how remarkable he thinks she is. She tells him that she likes him too, despite how short a time they have known one another. Jack tells her that he has written in his journal about her every night since they met and that he thinks he is falling in love with her. Ellie confesses that she feels the same way.

The next afternoon, Ellie has lunch with Sara after her math lesson. Sara asks whether Ellie has been out on the water yet and suggests that she, Jack, and Ellie go fishing sometime. Sara tells Ellie that Jack kissed her once, the previous summer, but she says that he didn’t seem very impressed by the experience and that she is sure they are meant to just be friends. When Ellie talks to her sister, Amelia, on the phone the following day, Amelia is surprised to hear how enthusiastic Ellie is about spending time on the lake. As they talk further, Amelia worms the information about Jack out of her sister. Ellie worries that Amelia will tell their mother, who she knows will react badly, but Amelia swears she will not tell because the bond of sisterhood is too important. Ellie asks whether their mother is giving Amelia problems in Ellie’s absence, but Amelia reminds Ellie that she and their mother get along fine—it is Ellie whom their mother seems to dislike.