A Good Neighborhood

Juniper and Lily go their separate ways when they get to Blakely Academy, and Juniper is bullied by Kathi and Meghan. They call her “Junipure,” mocking her for the purity pledge she took when she was 14, and she ignores the bullies. At her church, New Hope, Juniper was taught that her virginity is her “superpower.” She judges Kathi and Meghan, who date and go to parties. However, she experiences typical sexual urges and thoughts.

Valerie hosts all the monthly book club meetings. Julia cuts through their yards and shows up with wine, foie gras, and crackers. She is worried that the items are too expensive. She also notes the contrast between her home, which is filled with the latest technology and other luxuries, and Valerie’s home, which is decorated with plants and does not have a television. The other women in the book club chat about their work, which exacerbates Julia’s feelings of insecurity. Xavier makes a brief appearance to take some food, but like everyone else, he avoids the foie gras.

Once settled in for the meeting, Kelli introduces Julia and reminds everyone to be polite, citing the argument from the previous meeting. Julia is impressed by the camaraderie in the book club. After the meeting, she asks Valerie if the foie gras made her seem “snooty,” but Valerie says that people boycotted the food because of the unethical processes used to make it. Julia was unaware that geese are force-fed with tubes so that their livers become fatty. She throws away the container, which she feels is wasteful, and then Valerie pulls it out to empty into her compost. She remarks that “knowing doesn’t help much” and that people will still buy unethical and damaging products (49).

The argument that occurred at the last book club had started when Esther, an older woman, argued that Lolita had been at fault for her own rape. Julia, who had not read the book, thought Lolita was about a teenage “temptress,” but Valerie corrects her and explains that it is about a 12-year-old girl who is kidnapped and raped by her stepfather. The two women exchange their experiences with childhood sexual assault. Julia was assaulted by one of her mother’s bosses when she was 13, and Valerie was harassed and assaulted by a neighbor/family friend, “Uncle” Ray. They discuss that there are good men in the world, citing Tom and Brad as their examples. Before parting, they discuss meeting again, and while Julia is excited by the idea, Valerie is hesitant because she is wary of Brad.

Juniper goes for a walk at dusk. Brad wants Juniper home by nine o’clock because they do not know everyone in the area, which Juniper finds suspicious because Brad does not mind when she runs alone at the state park. Juniper ponders what makes a good neighborhood, and she thinks back to when Brad was her “favorite person.” She does not like to think about the ways everything has changed in the last few years. Juniper does not agree with the extravagance of the house, and she feels the money used for decorating could have gone to honorable causes, such as adopting a dog or donating to a good cause.

While she is walking, Juniper runs into Xavier, Joseph, and Dashawn. Juniper appreciates Xavier’s good looks and his outgoing personality. He invites her to come to his house, and she calls her mother to ask if she can. Julia says no, and Juniper explains that her parents are protective and that she hadn’t expected a yes.

Brad is charming and outgoing, but the neighbors do not know much about him other than the information he presents to the general public. They know that he built his business himself and that it is successful. Mark, Brad’s accountant, confirms that Whitman HVAC is doing well, and he suggests that Brad should take some time for himself and also buy a boat. Brad is wavering between taking the time and expanding the company.

Juniper tells Brad that she wants to get a job, and she plans to apply to a few businesses in town. Brad counters and offers Juniper a job as a dispatcher with Whitman HVAC, and she agrees to consider it. Brad is excited by the idea of having Juniper “be right there where he could see her every day” (65), like Julia used to be. Brad is unsatisfied with Julia, who has not been as sexual as she was when they first met. He worries that her early eagerness was an act, and he is upset because he does not feel desired by her. Brad does not, however, want to have a shallow affair with another woman.

At the Whitman’s housewarming party, several attendees are interested in a photo of Juniper and Brad from the purity ball where Juniper took her celibacy pledge three years earlier. Brad said that he appreciated the program and will likely use it for Lily when she reaches that age, but he struggled to take the ceremony seriously. Some of the neighbors praise Brad for his efforts in helping to raise Juniper and for trying to instill traditional values in the girls. Others, however, quietly wonder about Juniper’s opinion. They question the ethics of a purity pledge, but they see the value in “discouraging overt sexuality” in teenage girls (70).

Juniper and Xavier separate themselves from the rest of the party. They sit in the backyard by the fence holding hands, talking, and sharing their first kiss.