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Opening Image
The opening shows Nora as a quiet, anxious girl talking with Mrs. Elm, the school librarian. It’s clear early on that Nora is deeply unhappy and has quit swimming, upsetting her father and adding to her regret. Cite: "Nineteen years before she decided to die, Nora Seed sat in the warmth of the small library at Hazeldene School in the town of Bedford." (Haig, 1) -
Set Up
In the setup, Nora is 35 and struggling with depression, though she hides it. She quit swimming after feeling pressure from coming in second place and has grown distant from her brother, who blames her for their band’s failure. Nora lost her job, canceled her wedding, suffers from panic attacks, and feels alone after her parents died, her best friend moved away, and her cat Vots passed. She seems to be thinking about ending her life. "She took out her phone and sent Izzy a message." (Haig, 17) -
Theme stated
The theme of the story is regret, which is shown throughout the book. Nora’s biggest regret is feeling like her life has no meaning which leads her to want to end it. She also regrets missing her student’s lesson, losing her friendship with Izzy, her band failing, and quitting swimming. She wonders how her life might have changed if she had made different choices but soon she would find out…
Cite:"I'd have let everyone down ir he end." (Haig, 14 -
Debate
The main debate is when Nora must choose between dying or opening the Book of Regrets. She’s scared of what might happen, but Mrs. Elm tells her to read it first. Nora finally decides to open the book and finds out.
"Nora stared at it. She could see it now. The small typeface embossed on the cover." (Haig, 34) -
Catalyst
The catalyst in the story is when Nora feels her life is at its worst. She’s overwhelmed by sadness and disappointment. Her main problem is that she no longer wants to live.
Cite:"It vas, she decided, a very good time to die." (Haig, 22) -
Break into two
Nora chooses to open the Book of Regrets without knowing what will happen. As she reads, the regrets grow, especially as she gets older. She becomes overwhelmed by the reminders of everything she wishes she had done differently.
Cite:"Oh no," said Mrs Elm, breaking Nora's thought 'It's too much for you." (Haig, 37) -
B story
When Nora chooses the life she regrets wanting to see first, it is the secondary plot. This existence consists of her remaining with Dan and pursuing their pub dream. The final page shows her starting the life she has always wanted.
Cite:"Nora stared down and read. She walked out of the pub into the cool night air..." (Haig, 41) -
Fun and games
Nora begins to live different versions of her life—married to Dan near their dream pub, an Olympic swimmer, or a famous poet. But in each one, she finds unexpected problems and realizes no life is completely perfect.
Cite: "For Sylvia Plath, existence wa! a fig tree with each possible life she could live... but she couldn't get the taste of the sweet juicy figs and so they just rotted right in front of her." (Haig, 112) -
Midpoint
Nora realizes that no life is perfect. After living many different versions of her life, she sees that each one has problems and things she doesn’t enjoy.
Cite:"Maybe I got stuck. Maybe in every life I am stuck. I mean, Maybe that's just who I am." (Haig, 143) -
Bad guys close in
The real antagonist is Nora herself. Her fear and belief that a perfect life doesn’t exist are what hold her back and hurt her the most.
Cite:her."And we spend so mucl time wishing our lives were different, comparing ourselves to other people and to other versions of ourselves, when really most lives contain degrees of good and degrees of bad." (Haig, 179) -
All is lost
Nora is close to death in the real world, and time is running out. She struggles with her thoughts and the choice between living or dying. This is her lowest point mentally.
Cite: "As the library begins to fall apart, that means that she is starting to die in the real world. No is now battling the decision of living or dying." (Haig, 189) -
Dark Night of the soul
Nora realizes it’s not about finding a perfect life, but about valuing the life she already has. Her regrets weren’t the real problem—it was how she saw them and didn’t appreciate what she had.
Cite:"All you need to do is find a way to keep moving forward. One square after another."(Haig, 189) -
Break into three
Nora decides she wants to live her current life. She lets go of her regrets and realizes she should be proud of what she’s done. With this new mindset, she can finally enjoy her life.
Cite:"Nora wanted to live in a world wher 1o cruelty existed, but the only worlds she had available to ler were worlds with humans in them." (Haig, 197) -
Finale
When Nora returns to her normal life, she starts giving everything a chance. She reconnects with her brother and does things she avoided before. She begins to see life with a new perspective.
Cite: "I just don't understand life, sulked Nora. 'You Jon't have to understand life. You just have to live it." (Haig, 218) -
Final Images
Nora is changed from who she was at the start. She no longer sees life as a burden, but as a chance to try new things. She knows life will never be perfect and thats okay.
Cite:"Well, that's the beauty, isn't it? You just never know now it ends." (Haig, 287)