Quick: Think of one single character in Stitches who isn't suffering. Can't do it? We can't either. There's so much suffering in this book that David doesn't even get a break in his dreams, which provide some of the most heart-shattering panels. (The one with the little motherless bat in the rain will make you need to watch Disney movies on repeat for at least a week.) If ever there was a study of the generational trickle-down of unhappiness, this is it. People who don't do anything about their own suffering make other people suffer, including their own children.
Questions About Suffering
- How does the suffering of the little bat reflect David's own? Why does the dream occur at that particular point in the story?
- How do the other members of David's family (including his scary grandma) suffer?
- Do the poor people in the boarding house suffer less than David's family?
- Why do David's parents suffer financially, while his dad's other doctor friends have yachts?
Chew on This
David's parents don't realize he's suffering after the surgery. They just think he's being a rebellious teenager, so they send him off to boarding school to try and fix him.
Shortly after David goes to therapy, he says his family begins to rapidly fall apart. In reality, they're no more messed up than they've ever been; it's just that he can see it better.