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
Peter’s mom, Mrs. Kavinsky, owns an antique store next to the bookstore where Josh works. Lara Jean stops in sometimes to visit a gold locket she loves, and years ago, Daddy bought Mommy a pin there. It was Mommy’s favorite, so they buried her with it. Lara Jean is admiring the locket one afternoon when Peter appears from the back room. He says his mom is making him pick up some chairs a two-hour drive away tomorrow, and Lara Jean should come. Her presence will make it more fun. Lara Jean isn’t convinced, but Peter says this estate sale should be fantastic. The owner isn’t dead yet; he’s just moving to a nursing home. Lara Jean agrees to go.
With Mrs. Kavinsky’s entry into the story, Lara Jean and Peter pull yet another person into their lies about their fake relationship. Given how they’re already struggling to manage their lies, this suggests that things are going to get even more difficult. But learning about how Peter helps his mom with her antiques business also humanizes him and makes him seem more complex. He’s clearly not just a jerk, as Josh has suggested—he, like Lara Jean, is loyal to his family.
Themes
That night, Lara Jean packs sandwiches for her and Peter the next morning. Kitty joins her in the kitchen and says she likes Peter. He’s different from Josh, but he’s fun. Kitty insists that Lara Jean has to learn Peter’s favorite food if she’s going to be his girlfriend.
Kitty doesn’t seem to be plagued by the same fear of intimacy that her sisters are; it’s not as big of a deal for her to get close to Peter. In this way, she demonstrates a less stressful way of being in relationships.
Themes
Peter was going to pick Lara Jean up at seven, but Lara Jean is still waiting at 7:30 the next morning. He finally shows up at 7:45—Lara Jean could’ve slept in another hour. As she climbs into the minivan, Peter apologizes and offers her a donut. It’s the best donut Lara Jean has ever had. They discuss their favorite foods. Peter likes cinnamon toast, while Lara Jean likes cake. She offers to make him an olive oil cake sometime and then offers him a sandwich.
Lara Jean might be annoyed that Peter was late, but it’s not hard to forgive him when he comes prepared with donuts and makes a point to apologize. Lara Jean’s annoyance also indicates that their pretend relationship is teaching Lara Jean what she wants out of a real relationship in the future.
Themes
An hour later, Peter starts driving more aggressively and checking the clock. He explains that he’s trying to beat the Epsteins, who are rival antiques dealers. At a stoplight, Peter spots them a few cars ahead. When the light turns green, Peter speeds onto the shoulder and past the Epsteins’ car. They get to the estate sale first. Lara Jean is disappointed that the house looks normal, but Peter warns her that there could still be a bunch of great stuff. Inside, Peter approaches a man to purchase the chairs while Lara Jean looks around. A minute later, the Epsteins come in and ask if Peter got the chairs.
Again, Peter is becoming more complex and interesting (both for Lara Jean and the reader)—he clearly has a longstanding rivalry with the Epsteins, and he takes helping his mom out seriously. Lara Jean continues to see that she can’t judge Peter solely by his reputation at school.
Themes
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Lara Jean shows Peter a hot pink glass reindeer she found. He encourages her to haggle for it herself. The man at the table refuses to sell the reindeer without the rest of the set. Peter gives Lara Jean a look, so she asks the man again. He relents and lets Lara Jean take the reindeer for free.
Here, Peter pushes Lara Jean out of her comfort zone by encouraging her to haggle for the reindeer all by herself. This is new for Lara Jean, especially since Margot did so many things for her. In this way, Peter is helping Lara Jean become more confident and mature.
Themes
As Peter leaves to move the van closer, Lara Jean admires some old photos on the wall. An old man behind her says the girl in the photos is his daughter, the one who’s sending him to the nursing home. When he sees that Lara Jean has the reindeer, he says it was his daughter’s favorite and offers Lara Jean some of his daughter’s clothes—she’s not here to help him move, anyway. Peter finds Lara Jean upstairs a bit later, digging through a trunk of vintage clothes while Mr. Clarke, the old man, sleeps. Lara Jean shows Peter her finds and thanks Mr. Clarke for the clothes. He calls Lara Jean by his daughter’s name.
Lara Jean is much too excited about the reindeer and the clothes to notice, but what Mr. Clarke has to say about his daughter shows that not all families are as close as Lara Jean’s is. Mr. Clarke seems bitter that his daughter isn’t here now, and that she’s sending him to the nursing home—he seems to see this as a betrayal. His daughter’s independence is difficult for him to accept.
Themes
Lara Jean falls asleep as soon as she gets in the car and only wakes up when Peter says they’re home. He thanks her for coming and then invites her to dinner tomorrow night—Mrs. Kavinsky wants to meet her. Lara Jean is aghast he told his mom about them, but Peter points out that Kitty knows about them. Lara Jean reminds him that their lies will get harder to manage the more people that find out. She knows because she lied all the time as a kid.
Lara Jean and Peter are walking a fine line. It’d be odd, Peter suggests, if his mom didn’t meet Lara Jean—but telling her about the relationship also means that more people are in on the lie. And from experience, Lara Jean knows that this is going to make things more difficult, since it’ll be harder to keep their story straight.
Themes
