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Chapter 56
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Spectacular Things, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Sacrifice and Love
Dreams, Ambition, and Meaning
Love and Loss
Competition vs. Teamwork
Community
Summary
Analysis
In June, Cricket gets a call from Teague. Teague says that Cricket has been named to the Olympic team. Moreover, Teague says that she’s been extremely impressed by Cricket’s play over the past six months. She’s also impressed by Cricket’s leadership capabilities. Then, Teague announces that she wants Sloane and Cricket to compete to see who will be the starting goalkeeper on the team. Cricket can’t believe what she’s hearing. She calls Mia, who congratulates her. When Cricket returns to her apartment, she finds that Sloane has sent her $500 bed sheets. Cricket calls Sloane, and Sloane explains that whoever wins the starting job will get the sheets. The sheets—clean sheets—are a symbol of a goalkeeper getting a shutout. Cricket thinks it’s a sign that Sloane is nervous that she might lose her job as the team’s starter, which pleases Cricket.
Cricket’s hard work pays off as she achieves her dream of making the U.S. National Team. This passage also shows how Sloane and Cricket’s competitive relationship seems to be coming to a head, as the two must now compete directly to see who will become the U.S. team’s starting goalkeeper. When Sloane sends Cricket the sheets, Cricket interprets it as a sign that Sloane is nervous. However, Sloane seems to intend the gesture not just as a friendly wager but also perhaps as a way to intimidate Cricket. The gesture is also meaningful in an economic sense, as Cricket comes from a modest upbringing while Sloane’s family is exorbitantly wealthy, and the expensive sheets then symbolize the vast discrepancies in their respective upbringings.
Themes
