Finding Audrey Chapter 1 Summary & Analysis

Audrey thinks her mother, Anne, has gone insane. Anne is standing at a second-story window with the computer that belongs to Frank, Audrey’s brother, balanced on the windowsill. Anne is upset that Frank got up at 2 a.m. the night before to play a computer game, Land of Conquerors, behind her back. Frank yells from down below, asking her not to throw his computer out the window. He says that playing Land of Conquerors is a real sport, and he has to practice for an upcoming tournament. Anne asks rhetorically what she did wrong in raising him. She just wanted Frank to be well-rounded, she says, and she then tells Frank that he’s not going to make a living from gaming. Meanwhile, Audrey watches on from a nearby window, trying to remain out of sight.

This passage introduces three of the novel’s principal characters—Audrey, Anne, and Frank. Anne and Frank’s dynamic seems to be defined by conflict, and Anne is especially concerned about Frank’s habit of playing video games. Anne’s rhetorical question about what she did wrong in raising Frank shows that she is judgmental of Frank and critical of his interests as opposed to being supportive of him. Meanwhile, Audrey’s attempts to remain out of sight suggest that she may be hiding from something and that she is not entirely comfortable, even in her own home.

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Finding Audrey: Chapter 1 Summary & Analysis