Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of gender discrimination.

Sookie’s relationship with Lenore is at the very heart of the novel. Sookie feels conflicted between wishing that she could be less vulnerable to her mother’s influence and worrying that she has disappointed her mother through her choices in life. As the narrative progresses, Sookie learns more about herself and about Lenore, with her discoveries illustrating the complicated relationships between mothers and daughters.

Lenore and Sookie’s relationship is complex, as they are two very different individuals. When Sookie thinks of Lenore, she “love[s] her, but Lord, she was a lot of trouble” (14). For much of her childhood, “Lenore ruled with an iron hand” despite the fact that Sookie “had always been basically shy. She never wanted to be a Magnolia Trail Maiden or a cheerleader or to join all those organizations” (15). Lenore pushes Sookie due to her own feelings of inadequacy, as she regrets that she never achieved her dream of becoming an actress. Her constant demands and unwanted advice make Sookie feel like Lenore is always disappointed in her. Sookie spends much of the novel trying to find out who she is outside of Lenore’s big personality and demands.