What do these events teach the reader about life

Through the telling of Charlotte’s story and the inclusion of characters like Vern, Ryan explores what it means to truly be free. Charlotte feels trapped by her gender. She is made to work in the kitchen because she is the only girl at the orphanage. As such, she is expected to work as Mrs. Boyle’s kitchen maid. When Charlotte was little, Mrs. Boyle literally imprisoned her in the potato box when parents come to adopt children because she did not want to lose her kitchen help. By taking on the appearance of a boy, Charlotte is able to gain her freedom from the orphanage because being a boy allows her to travel alone. When she lives as a male, she is afforded the freedom to do the one thing she loves more than anything, work with horses.