What metaphors are used in A Slipping-down Life by Anne Tyler?

Evie's House is a metaphor for the emptiness her dead mother has left behind. Evie's house is where she lives with her father for much of the novel. Description is sparse. It has a fenced yard, the front porch has a swing, the characters sit together on a couch in the living room in front of the television, and Evie's room is upstairs. The house has little games and knickknacks that Evie's father uses to the pass the time. A photo of Evie's dead mother is in one room, and the kitchen has a table and chairs where Evie drinks cocoa and has breakfast.