Sisters

Amara is Raina’s younger sister and the deuteragonist of the story. The story is narrated exclusively through dialogue, and Amara’s voice is often the loudest. She is stubborn, particular, and many of the story’s flashbacks feature Amara having emotional meltdowns whenever she doesn’t get her way; this includes when she wants McDonald’s and is denied, when she wants the front seat, and when she wants her sister’s attention and Raina ignores her. When Amara screams, the text bubbles consume the panel in an alarming fashion: “YOU CAN’T MAKE ME!!! … YOWL!!! WAAAAH!!!” (71). Amara’s behavior creates the impression that she is hateful, but in truth, she feels angry, misunderstood, and ignored. These inner conflicts cause her to lash out and often refuse to connect with her family. Amara’s name means immortal and love, but also “bitter one” (11), which becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

In many ways, Amara is self-centered and lacks concern for how others might feel about the way she acts. She punches Raina and kicks her seat, changes her music without regard for her turn, and laughs at Raina for being scared of spiders or needing to pee on the highway. Amara intentionally antagonizes Raina in this way, testing her patience and their sisterly bond. Despite all of Amara’s difficult behaviors, Raina continuously tries to connect with her over the years. Amara is in many ways like her mother, as they are both stubborn and easily irritated; they also have a similar physical appearance, which is emphasized to help illustrate their similarities. Amara is a skilled drawer and at one point takes over the family computer when she discovers its paint application. She also has a deep love for animals, which is showcased by her hobbies and her insistence on keeping a pet snake and her enthusiasm at the zoo. Additionally, Amara is more in tune with the family’s dynamics and her parents’ relationship problems. She also does not shy away from helping Raina realize that she spends too much time tuned out from the world and her loved ones.

Raina’s parents play a key role in the story’s narrative. They affect the family dynamic in both explicit and implicit ways, and their personalities both clash with one another and occasionally clash with their children. Mom is a stricter and more neurotic parent who spends much of her time stressed out or irritated, much like Amara. Dad is the more lenient and laid-back parent; it takes him several months to find work, and he doesn’t seem to worry about it in the meantime, instead enjoying his days with his children. He is also more willing to give in to Amara’s demands and tantrums, whereas Mom is not. This becomes a source of conflict between Mom and Dad as they grapple with their different outlooks on parenting. Dad and Will share a special bond, as they both love baseball and Will looks up to his father greatly. Mom takes over the lead role in the family, naming each child and making most of the major decisions.

Mom and Dad’s different parenting styles affect how the children grow up, and the conflict between Mom and Dad has an effect on the children’s moods as well as their sibling dynamic. Family is not necessarily chosen, and Connecting with People and Overcoming Differences is often most challenging within a family. Like Raina and Amara, Mom and Dad’s opposing views often lead to arguments. For the most part, Raina’s parents are discreet about their problems, and despite being younger, Amara is more intuitive than Raina when it comes to noticing them: “They haven’t really gotten along for years. Haven’t you noticed all the little signs? … Maybe if you weren’t so busy turning out the rest of the world…” (183). The tension between Mom and Dad ripples out into the rest of the family, and Raina and Amara each react to it in their own way. Amara fakes indifference and Raina panics. Although these issues are not resolved by the end of the novel, Raina and Amara start to realize that they can at least count on one another.