Have you ever noticed the similarities and differences between characters when reading different books? Like Arnold (Junior), from The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. A 14-year old boy who’s condition leads to him being bullied by others. This causes him to think lowly of himself, believing he can’t fight back. But at heart Arnold is a warrior who, despite the things he encounters, becomes the first person to leave the reservation and attend Reardan High in search for hope. And Lily, from The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. A 14-year old girl living with her sub-abusive father and the guilt of killing her own mom. She sets off on a journey with Rosaleen to search for her mother’s past. Both characters leave everything they’ve ever known, in search for a place where they belong.
A similarity between the two is that both of them are persistent and are able to survive different situations. In The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian, Arnold throws his textbook at his teacher when he realizes that it was pretty old years old after seeing his moms name in it. The widespread presence of in the community angered him, so throwing the textbook was a sign that he had not given up yet. In The Secret Life of Bees, Lily takes a risk to save Rosaleen and leaves everything she has ever known, she did all of this believing she could find more about her mother based on just a single photo.
They are both very tenacious as well. Lily learns that she was an accident, and that T-Ray was actually telling the truth when he told Lily that her mother left her. The image of her mother’s devotion is shattered. But Lily understands that though her mom wasn’t perfect, she really did care for her. Arnold on the other hand, deals with the deaths of his grandma and sister. Even with all of this going on he finishes his school year, and begins to recover with his family.
Both characters are also pretty different with how their problems were resolved. Arnold’s problems with the reservation slowly lost its importance after the death of his family members. Lily matures during her time at the Boatwright house with new support from the community. This gives her the courage to stand up to T-Ray which shows how much she has changed.
So Arnold made new friends and dealt with deaths of loved ones. And Lily found a community where she would slowly mature. Although both characters had different journeys, they were both looking for some kind of hope which led to their coming of age.