65 pages • 2 hours read
Ibi ZoboiA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Before You Read
Summary
Background
“Half a Moon” by Renée Watson
“Black Enough” by Varian Johnson
“Warning: Color May Fade” by Leah Henderson
“Black. Nerd. Problems.” by Lamar Giles
“Out of the Silence” by Kekla Magoon
“The Ingredients” by Jason Reynolds
“Oreo” by Brandy Colbert
“Samson and the Delilahs” by Tochi Onyebuchi
“Stop Playing” by Liara Tamani
“Wild Horses, Wild Hearts” by Jay Coles
“Whoa!” by Rita Williams-Garcia
“Gravity” by Tracey Baptiste
“The Trouble With Drowning” by Dhonielle Clayton
“Kissing Sarah Smart” by Justina Ireland
“Hackathon Summers” by Coe Booth
“Into the Starlight” by Nic Stone
“The (R)evolution of Nigeria Jones” by Ibi Zoboi
Character Analysis
Themes
Symbols & Motifs
Important Quotes
Essay Topics
The narrator of the story, Cassie, is writing to Tessa, who died in a car crash recently. Cassie notes how little they knew each other, as their entire relationship was six months in gym together bonding over the fact that neither was interested in participating.
Although Cassie does not attend Tessa’s funeral, given how little they knew each other, she does think about what it would be like to talk to Tessa’s mother there. She imagines telling her that her daughter “shook [her] life to its foundation” (99).
Cassie remembers their few conversations in gym class, during one of which Tessa tells Cassie that she assumed she was a lesbian, especially based on the way she looks at Angela in gym class. Cassie is shocked by the cavalier way that Tessa discusses her possible queer identity, thinking of how much it would mean to her life if she was, in fact, a lesbian. She becomes worried that other people think of her as a lesbian, but Tessa simply shrugs.
Cassie reveals that it has been six months since Tessa died, and all she has done is think about her and her features—eyes, nails, and her “red, red lips” that were “silenced and a part of [Cassie] was entirely relieved” (105).
By Ibi Zoboi