Book 4, Chapter 31 Summary

Sophie goes to her sexual phobia group. There are two other girls in the group with her. At the end of the meeting, they each write the name of their abuser on a sheet of paper and burn it. Sophie realizes she no longer feels guilty about burning her mother's name. She knows that her own pain and her mother's were only links in a long chain of pain. After the meeting, she feels broken, but a little closer to being free. When she gets home, Joseph shows her that Brigitte has learned to say "Dada."

Book 4, Chapter 31 Analysis

Sophie's understanding and lack of guilt over burning her mother's name indicate progress toward recovery. She understands now that her mother, and her mother before her, was only one link in a long chain of mothers, who each felt the same pain...