Summary

Chapter 17, “Wendy Wakes Up” (141) is the first chapter told from the point of view of Wendy, Elliot’s wife. The chapter begins at the start of Wendy’s sons’ midday naptime, a time that afforded Wendy two hours of peace. The narration explains that Wendy felt trapped both in her current role as the primary caretaker of their children and as an outsider in Clapham, where Elliot had the knowledge and upper hand in everything. She resented Elliot for believing that she had inherent expertise in childcare that he did not.

Elliot arrived home during the boys’ naptime to announce that he received an offer for the empty building in Clapham from a large chain called Beauty Bar. Wendy pointed out that this would mean putting a “big and glossy” (147) salon across the street from Shear Beauty, where Birdie worked. Elliot responded that...