Oona Out of Order

Content Warning: This section references drug use and addiction.

Oona Lockhart is the time-traveling protagonist of the novel, which follows her from the developmental age of 18 to 25 but ranges in time from 1982 to 2017. At 18, she is good with numbers and studying economics in school. However, she is considering dropping out to join her band in a tour around Europe. She is a very physical person with a healthy self-image, but when combined with her addictive tendencies, this trait sometimes leads her to indulge in things that are not good for her—e.g., drugs and unprotected sex. She is also prone to anxiety and obsession, which exacerbates her tendency to think only of her own problems.

Oona is a traditional bildungsroman character whose arc involves maturing and finding herself. Among other things, this means gaining confidence in herself as an artist. Embracing her love for the guitar fulfills Oona’s destiny and exemplifies the importance of Being True to Oneself. Other changes are more internal. Oona is in constant battle with herself, as older versions of her try to warn and prevent younger selves from making mistakes. As she matures, however, the instruction becomes less about warning Oona and more about