46 pages • 1 hour read
Taylor Jenkins ReidMaybe in Another Life
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2015A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 19-27Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 19 Summary
After her family leaves, Hannah calls Gabby, who tells her to get some rest. In the evening, Henry comes to check on Hannah and notices the cinnamon rolls, which Hannah shares with him. They are laughing and conversing when Hannah gets a spasm in her leg, and Henry helps her to breathe through it. He tells her to get some rest and call if she needs him.
Chapter 20 Summary
At the car dealership, Hannah is tempted to buy a red Prius but settles for a Toyota Camry, wanting to make smart financial decisions. She manages to negotiate the price down by over $1000. Once in the car on the way to the vet, she calls Ethan with the good news. Afterward, she calls Carl at his office, who sets her up with his HR person to explain Hannah’s salary and benefits; Hannah manages to negotiate her salary up by $4000. After the call, she calls Ethan again with the news that she now has a car and a job. They meet up to celebrate, but before Hannah starts eating, she feels queasy again. She runs to the bathroom in time to vomit. When Ethan comes to check on her, she realizes immediately that she is pregnant.
Chapter 21 Summary
Hannah wakes up to the sound of Henry looking for his phone. She helps him find it in the dark while he explains why he has so many hair ties on his wrist: He tells her he finds them all at the hospital and uses them to remind himself of tasks he needs to do. Eventually, he finds his phone. Hannah wonders if they would have found each other in another life, and if he would have asked her out.
Chapter 22 Summary
At lunch, Hannah promises not to vomit again. She digs into the food and tries not to think about the fact that she is pregnant with Michael’s baby. When they get to the animal hospital, the vet says the dog is not chipped and is probably better off not going back to its original owner. Not wanting to leave Charlamagne on the streets, Hannah decides to take her in. Ethan tells Hannah the dog can stay at his place for the night, but Hannah heads for Gabby’s, feeling guilty knowing that Mark is allergic to dogs. In the privacy of the car, Hannah cries for a long time.
Chapter 23 Summary
Hannah wakes to find Ethan has come to visit her in the hospital, cinnamon roll in tow. Ethan tells her he feels terrible about what happened to her. She tells him she believes that certain things are just meant to happen, and that the universe is keeping her on the right path. In the middle of their talking, Henry comes in. Ethan can sense there is something going on between him and Hannah, so he decides to leave. Henry tells Ethan that Hannah loves cinnamon rolls, and Ethan gives him a curt reply.
Chapter 24 Summary
Hannah takes several pregnancy tests; all of them are positive. At Gabby’s, Hannah tells her the news and dissolves into tears. Gabby reassures her, telling her that they are going to get through the situation together. Hannah asks Gabby if she thinks some things are meant to; Gabby tells her that she does. They make plans to see a doctor to confirm the pregnancy and learn about what Hannah needs to do.
Chapter 25 Summary
Henry tells Hannah that she is almost ready to start using a wheelchair. He warns her that it will be an adjustment at first, but that she should be fine. When it is ready, Henry helps Hannah into the wheelchair and teaches her how to operate it. Though she is not supposed to, he allows her to roam the halls briefly before getting her back in bed. When Gabby comes by later, Hannah confesses that she has a crush on Henry.
Chapter 26 Summary
Hannah finds out she is 11 weeks pregnant and that the baby is healthy. On the way back from the appointment, Gabby wants to surprise Mark with lunch at his work. When Hannah and Gabby get there, they find Mark kissing a blonde woman.
Chapter 27 Summary
Gabby leaves early to go home to see Mark. Since being in the hospital, Mark has not visited Gabby once. Henry stops by in the evening and gives Hannah a tour of the hospital in her new wheelchair. She asks him what his favorite movie is, and he tells her it is The Godfather. Hannah says she does not have a favorite film. When the time comes to pick a snack from the vending machine, Hannah is indecisive. Henry tells her that she does not need to make the perfect choice all the time, but to just pick something and try it out. Afterward, he takes her out onto the smoking patio.
Seeing cars zoom by makes Hannah emotional, knowing that she is stuck in her hospital bed, but Henry consoles her before they head back inside. In her room, when Henry is lifting Hannah out of her chair, there is a brief moment of tenderness between them. Another nurse, noticing, calls for Henry, and his demeanor changes immediately.
Chapters 19-27 Analysis
This section sees Hannah continue to make significant strides in developing her new life plan. The fact that Hannah manages to both buy a car and secure a job within hours of making her important to-do list speaks to her determination to start living more purposefully and to better discipline herself. Similarly, these chapters see Hannah wrestle with the habits of her past self, as she must actively challenge them in order to stay true to her goal of changing her life for the better. In particular, Hannah begins to practice self-restraint and caution in a way she never has before. For example, when she sets the goal of buying a car in Chapter 20, Hannah is tempted to throw caution to the wind and purchase a red Prius. Knowing that such a choice would be impulsive and indulgent, Hannah takes the time to process her other options, whereas in the past, she may have given into temptation. The fact that Hannah makes a such a careful decision when picking out a car and manages to talk the dealer down several thousand dollars is indicative of her resolve to take ownership of her life and happiness.
Consequently, this section also sees the beginning of Hannah’s downfall (within the same storyline), following her realization that she is pregnant with Michael’s child. The fact that Hannah’s discovery that she is pregnant comes on the heels of successfully buying a car and securing a job serves an important narrative purpose. Because it will presumably have a negative effect on Hannah’s thriving romance with Ethan, the pregnancy becomes the storyline’s central conflict. Whereas Hannah’s experiences of a series of successes just before discovering her pregnancy function as rising action, the pregnancy (and potentially doomed relationship with Ethan) continues to build narrative tension, urging the reader to invest themselves in this will-they-or-won’t-they relationship.
In the alternate storyline, this section sees Hannah grow closer to Henry. Their obvious and increasingly potent chemistry further entices readers, particularly those who may be rooting for this coupling to win out over that of Hannah and Ethan in the opposing storyline. The fact that Henry is the one to help Hannah into her wheelchair for the first time is important; Hannah’s wheelchair symbolizes the start of a new life, and Henry’s presence during this pivotal moment of transition indicates that he too may become an essential new part of Hannah’s life.
The last chapter in this section, which finds Henry being reprimanded for how he is interacting with Hannah, creates conflict in their otherwise amicable relationship. As with Hannah’s pregnancy in the alternate storyline, Henry’s position as Hannah’s nurse creates tension in what could be a thriving romantic relationship, because he may be forced to maintain his professional boundaries.
These chapters also see the beginning of Gabby’s failed marriage with Mark, whom she catches cheating on her in the last chapter of this section. The fact that the downfall of Gabby’s marriage runs parallel to the downfall of Hannah’s relationships with both Ethan and Henry is not a coincidence. Rather, their overlapping failed romances call to attention the strength of their friendship, as in each instance of a romance gone awry, both Gabby and Hannah have the other to fall back on for support.
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