A Good Neighborhood

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2020

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 1, Chapters 1-4

Part 1, Chapters 5-10

Part 1, Chapters 11-14

Part 1, Chapters 15-18

Part 2, Chapters 19-21

Part 2, Chapters 22-24

Part 2, Chapters 25-30

Part 2, Chapters 31-35

Part 3, Chapters 36-39

Part 3, Chapters 40-46

Part 3, Chapter 47-Epilogue

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Part 2, Chapters 19-21Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 2, Chapter 19 Summary

Juniper and Xavier get off work early after a delivery truck breaks down. Xavier apologizes for kissing Juniper, but Juniper says he does not need to be sorry. He says that he likes her but that he is leaving in August, which would make things hard for them. They talk about being friends but conclude that they should not ignore their feelings for each other. Xavier turns the conversation to Juniper’s car. She is embarrassed because she thinks the car is too extravagant, but Xavier says that Juniper did what anyone in that situation would do. Juniper then asks Xavier if he wants to get a milkshake, and he follows behind as they drive to the restaurant. Juniper feels a mix of “boldness” and “nervousness.” She feels emboldened by her newfound interest in independence, but she is nervous around Brad.

Juniper and Xavier call their meeting an “un-date.” They ask each other questions, with Xavier starting first and questioning Juniper’s purity pledge. She says she had wanted to take the pledge because she enjoyed the culture of the church. The people were calm and happy, and there were fun activities she could get involved in. New Hope preached that by being modest and obedient, the girls could find respect, love, and admiration. The pledge, she said, was also supposed to help “counteract the unhealthy pressures” that Juniper was bound to receive in society (133), and she felt that it did help. However, she does not feel the same as she did when she took the pledge at 14. As they are leaving, Juniper says that they need to keep their relationship secret. The narrators reveal that Juniper has been keeping another secret for five months, but they do not provide details.

Part 2, Chapter 20 Summary

The explanation of Juniper’s secret is revealed in three parts. Five months prior, Julia and Lily were spending a day or two with Lottie after Lottie had been diagnosed with COPD. Juniper stayed home alone with Brad. During the purity pledge three years prior, Juniper realized that Brad had sexual thoughts and feelings about her. She thought that she had unintentionally caused the issue, and she did not tell anyone. At the ball, she paid close attention to him, and she convinced herself that his feelings for her were purely paternal.

While Julia and Lily were away, Juniper decided to practice the role of housewife by cooking dinner for Brad. Brad was surprised because they had discussed going out for dinner. After dinner, Brad went to his den, where he drank scotch and thought about the night. He admitted to himself that he has sexual feelings for Juniper, which he had had for several years. After she made dinner for him, he started thinking that Juniper returned his feelings.

When he left the den to go to bed, he stopped at Juniper’s room and saw she had fallen asleep with the light on. He went in to shut off the light, and he leaned over and kissed her on the mouth. He was conflicted by his actions, but he was convinced that, if Juniper had been awake, she would have consented. He leaves the room without waking her, and he is upset that he cannot have what he wants—Juniper.

Part 2, Chapter 21 Summary

Chapter 21 consists of one line: “The secret, part three: Juniper had not actually been asleep” (143).

Part 2, Chapters 19-21 Analysis

Juniper’s new feelings of boldness inspire her to ask Xavier on a date. By going out with Xavier, Juniper is breaking several rules, including driving her car to a non-approved location and spending time with a boy. She is driven by her intense feelings for Xavier to risk the consequences she could face from Julia and Brad. Her parents’ fluctuating messages combined with her developing sense of independence lead her to hope that they may be convinced to allow her to date Xavier, especially since he is an impressive student and her parents like him.

Although Juniper willingly participated in the purity pledge and feels that she has benefitted from the experience, she acknowledges that she does not intend on keeping her pledge. Her early life was erratic, and New Hope offered a sense of community that made Juniper feel safe and comfortable. She was then taught that her worth is tied to her virginity, and she trusted the adults telling teaching her this concept. Between Brad’s sexual feelings for her and the assault, her lack of attendance at church, and her feelings for Xavier, Juniper no longer values her promises of chastity. She is in the process of discovering herself and, in the process, discovering that her worth is not linked to her sexuality.

Chapter 20 introduces the primary conflict—Brad’s sexual feelings for Juniper. Leading up to this chapter, the author introduces the ideas that Brad is not who he seems to be and that Juniper is uncomfortable around him. The author foreshadows Brad’s feelings by referencing Lolita and by demonstrating Juniper’s nervousness. Juniper has been aware of Brad’s feelings since she was 14, which is why she pretended to be asleep when he came into her room. She hoped that, by pretending to be asleep, she could avoid his sexual attention. Brad, meanwhile, believes that Juniper wants to sleep with him. He comes to this conclusion because Juniper cooks while Julia is gone. His assumption that Juniper is attracted to him demonstrates that he is a narcissistic person who is unable to accurately interpret situations or the feelings of others.