Open Heart
The carved wooden heart that Atlas makes for Lily when they are teenagers symbolizes the significant role that Lily and Atlas have played in each other’s lives. As a teenager, Lily is terrorized by…
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Lily’s Better in Boston Magnet
The Better in Boston magnet is a dual symbol of the Lily’s and Atlas’s past and future. In high school, they bond over their struggle to survive toxic living situations, and they spend…
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Plants
In the novel, Lily’s relationship with plants symbolizes her capacity to overcome the violence of her childhood. As a child, Lily kept a small garden plot of mostly vegetables in her parent’s backyard. Plants…
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