Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Family, Responsibility, and Growing Up
Love and Fear
Social Structure, Reputation, and High School
Lies vs. Honesty
Summary
Analysis
Lara Jean wakes up on Saturday to the sound of Daddy mowing the lawn. She considers painting her bedroom to shake things up, but Margot is the only one who’s painted a room before (when she volunteered with Habitat for Humanity). To avoid having to help with yardwork, Lara Jean cleans the downstairs and brainstorms how to get out of her current predicament.
In this passage, Lara Jean presents Margot as someone virtuous (in that she volunteered with Habitat for Humanity) and skilled (since she knows how to paint rooms). In contrast, Lara Jean is none of those things, which she sees as a sign of her immaturity. She also seems to think of herself as less capable than Margot.
Themes
Lara Jean is folding laundry when Kitty gets home. Kitty describes the Nutella crepes she ate and asks why they never have Nutella at home. Lara Jean notes that Margot is allergic to hazelnuts, but they can get some now that she’s gone. When Lara Jean asks how much Kitty misses Margot on a scale of one to 10, Kitty gives a six point five—she’s been too busy to miss Margot much. Kitty suggests that Lara Jean stay busier, so that she doesn’t miss Margot so much.
There might be some upsides to Margot being gone, such as being able to have Nutella at home without putting Margot in danger. It also seems like Kitty is so happy with Margot’s absence because she’s not old enough to be competing with Margot in anyway. While Lara Jean must constantly compare herself to Margot and take stock of where she falls short, Kitty isn’t old enough to have to worry about that.
Themes
Lara Jean is tickling Kitty in retaliation when Daddy comes inside with a letter that was returned to sender. It’s Lara Jean’s letter to Kenny from camp. Lara Jean rips open the letter and reads it. Her letter mentions a joke Kenny made about minnows, and then Lara Jean writes that Kenny made her feel better about being far away from home. When she’s done, Lara Jean thinks that this is the first love letter she wrote, and she’s glad it came back to her—though it wouldn’t have been the worst thing if Kenny had gotten the letter.
The letter to Kenny is very different in tone from the one Lara Jean sent to Peter. It’s sweet and kind, and Lara Jean doesn’t resort to writing out all of Kenny’s faults to get over him; camp ending was seemingly enough to help end her crush. In this way, the letter is perhaps less embarrassing than the one Lara Jean wrote to Peter. It also helps that Kenny doesn’t go to Lara Jean’s school, so Lara Jean would never have to deal with the embarrassment of seeing him in the hallways.
Themes
