111 pages • 3 hours read
Reyna GrandeThe Distance Between Us
Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 2012A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Summary
Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Key Figures
Themes
Symbols & Motifs
Important Quotes
Essay Topics
Tools
BetaSymbols & Motifs
The Man Behind the Glass
Initially in the narrative, this phrase refers to a framed photo of Reyna’s father. However, the photo gains weight symbolically, as it represents both hope and resentment for Reyna. Reyna talks to it, pleads for help, and asks it questions, especially as her life in Iguala becomes increasingly horrific.
Because her mother comes and goes, and because of the mistreatment at the hands of her grandmother, Reyna and her siblings expect this father/hero to rescue them.
At other times, Reyna wishes to destroy the photo, angry at her absent father and the irreparable damage he has caused to the family. When he returns to Mexico, and later takes them to California, she discovers that the person in the photo is not actually her father. Eventually she comes to terms with the fact that her idealized version of her father, while having helped to sustain her, is not who her father really is.
Fairy Tales
Reyna’s childhood exposure to traditional European fairy tales informs the narrative, especially in Book 1. She considers the story of the three little pigs as their house is being built. She relies, too, on the tale of Hansel and Gretel to explain her habit of following bread crumbs her ever absent mother leaves for her. Additionally, she reports that stepmother Mila was kind and attentive and not the evil stepmother that so frequently appears in fairy tales.
Photos Juxtaposed Against Narrative
Grande includes dozens of family and personal photos in the book. If one were to flip through the pages and look only at the images, the family would appear to be basically happy. However, these photos juxtaposed against the details of her life demonstrate an obvious and enlightening contradiction.
For example, on page 192, she shares a photo captioned “Papi on Christmas.” Not exactly smiling but seeming pleased, he doesn’t look like the kind of father that will days later beat his kids with his belt when he finds out that they innocently made an expensive call, thinking they were talking to Santa.
A photo of “Reyna and Mago” appears on page 198. Reyna is smiling widely, as her sister strikes a simple pose. They look happy, Reyna in particular. However, this is the photo she uses to introduce the chapter about Mago’s first period. Because she misses a day of school, her father beats her mercilessly. Mago, too ashamed to explain the reason, says nothing. Finally Reyna, in tears, pushes him away from her.
Holding and Releasing of Hands
This motif is especially powerful, as its portent shifts from beginning to end. As a child, Reyna hears the story of her parents at a swimming pool; her mother reports that her father held tightly onto her hand in the water. When Reyna first sees the ocean, she remembers that her cousin drowned and is scared to go into the water. Her father grips her hand tightly, and Reyna is comforted by the fact the he doesn’t let go. By the end of the book, with her father dying, she holds his hand as he is taken off life support; this time, she is the one who finally lets go—both physically and emotionally.
Related Titles
By Reyna Grande
