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
Margot announces that this year, they should do a recital party. When Mommy was alive, she’d make a bunch of food, dress Lara Jean and Margot in matching dresses, and make the girls play carols on the piano for friends and neighbors. Lara Jean always hated them because she was terrible at piano and Margot was fantastic—and the last year Mommy was alive, Lara Jean refused to even put on her dress and spent the whole party in her room. They haven’t had a recital party since then. Lara Jean tells Margot she doesn’t want to do it, but Margot offers to plan it all.
For Margot, the recital party was a happy time where she got to show off and make Mommy happy. But for Lara Jean, the recital party is more complicated. In her mind, it was an event where it was glaringly obvious that Margot was better at everything and was, perhaps, even Mommy’s favorite (since she was willing to play along).
Themes
Later, once Kitty has fallen asleep on the couch, Lara Jean tells Margot to let Kitty sleep and not put her in bed. She asks Margot to help her talk to Daddy about getting a puppy for Christmas, but Margot groans that puppies are too much work, and nobody will take care of it. She says Kitty isn’t mature enough—and the implication is that Lara Jean isn’t, either. Lara Jean insists that Kitty (and herself) have grown up and matured since Margot left. Kitty does laundry and packs her lunch now. Margot says she’s impressed. Lara Jean seethes—she just wants Margot to praise her for keeping things going.
Lara Jean is trying to treat Margot like an ally still by asking her to help convince Daddy about the puppy. But Margot seems unwilling to accept Lara Jean’s insistence that both she and Kitty have matured over the last three months, far beyond what Margot expected. To Lara Jean, it feels like Margot is purposefully denying her any recognition, which only heightens the tension between them.
Themes
