Convenient Recollection

The main theme of the novel is convenient recollection. Lani says that most humans suffer from convenient recollections: "a memory recalled inaccurately, to unconsciously protect against guilt, anxiety, or unwanted associations" (Page 132). The first time the reader is introduced to the idea of convenient recollections, Lani is trying to convince Claire that Macy has invented the moment when she swears she overheard Lani tell Tony not to blow smoke rings. As the novel progresses, Claire realizes that it would have been impossible for Macy to overhear this dialogue, but Macy is emphatic that this is what she heard. Macy's certainty about what she heard highlights the power of convenient recollection in one's life. Macy is unaware that she's lying, or that she's invented a new truth. Although the novel doesn't address the truth directly, it seems that Macy has conveniently recalled this dialogue as a way of...