Audre & Bash are Just Friends

“Honestly, all Audre Mercy-Moore wanted to do was go home and pack for ‘Dadifornia’—that is, her annual summerlong stay with her dad and stepmom in Malibu Beach, California. The trip was her heaven, her summertime reward for busting her ass all year to be a model student. Her dad’s cottage was so cozy, with its sun-faded teal exterior and seaside deck. Audre’s bedroom window faced the beach, where the roar of the ocean lulled her to sleep every night.”

“Dadifornia” is a portmanteau that reflects Audre’s creativity and her great fondness for her father’s home in Malibu, California. The author depicts the beachside cottage as a soothing paradise through visual imagery, such as the “sun-faded teal” exterior, and auditory imagery, such as “the roar of the ocean.” Diction reinforces how much the protagonist is looking forward to her annual trip; it’s “her heaven” and her “reward.” This passage helps emphasize the depth of her disappointment when she learns that she will spend the summer in Brooklyn.

“Audre was everyone’s rock. The thing about rocks, though? They’re hard on the outside and on the inside. They don’t have insecurities. Or doubts. Or panic attacks, like the one she’d had earlier that day.”

Rocks are often used as a metaphor to express an individual’s reliability. The author subverts this common comparison by juxtaposing the perfect, unshakeable exterior Audre presents to the outside world with her inner “insecurities,” “doubts,” and mental health conditions.

“Reshma Wells was the party hostess. She was also Audre’s best friend. Well, usually. At times, their extremely alpha personalities sort of clashed. When they were good, Reshma was her platonic soulmate. When they were bad, Reshma was her Regina George.”

In this passage, the allusion to the 2004 comedy/romance movie Mean Girls gives an idea of the sometimes contentious dynamic between Audre and Reshma by likening their relationship to that of friends-turned-enemies Cady Heron and Regina George. The reference also foreshadows the falling-out between the two teenagers.

“What did he do to her? Probably cheated. More than likely, she’d caught him texting some other girl. Typical. Most Brooklyn boys were allergic to being faithful. Pink Crocs watched as Witchy Tote punched something into his phone’s keypad.”

The passage offers an example of dramatic irony: Audre harshly misjudges Bash while the audience already knows that he and Clio are not a couple. Additionally, “Pink Crocs” and “Witchy Tote” are instances of synecdoche, a figure of speech where part of something stands in for the whole. This literary technique adds a touch of humor and offers characterization before Audre learns their names.

“It was a scorching-hot day, the sun glinting off strollers and cars. Folks were moving slower than usual, and so was Audre. After twenty sweaty minutes, she saw the shop just ahead of her on Degraw Street. The dusty gray awning read JUST BECAUSE in old-timey typewriter font.”

Williams uses imagery to capture the hot summer day: the description of the “scorching-hot” weather appeals to the sense of touch, and the descriptions of “the sun glinting off strollers and cars” and the store’s “dusty gray awning” appeal to the sense of sight. These vivid images indicate the importance of Audre’s first visit to the Just Because gift shop, which remains a key setting as the story continues.

“‘Yeah, he was my little buddy. But then he got his head stuck in a Doritos bag and suffocated.’ 

Audre burst out laughing. ‘They do say orange male cats are the least intelligent.’ 

Bash’s eyes widened. His mouth went slack. 

‘Wait. Oh no.’ She clasped her palms against her cheeks. ‘Did…did that really happen?’”

Bash’s brief story about his cat’s demise is an example of an anecdote. His willingness to share this account with a near-stranger indicates his openness and sincerity, traits that clash with Audre’s affectations in this chapter. The circumstances of the cat’s death and Audre’s gaffe in thinking that Bash was merely telling a joke provide dark humor, highlighting how the novel uses humor in its examination of serious subjects.

“Desperately, Audre thought of what Reshma would do in this situation. She changed her stance, tossing her braids to one side and popping out her hip seductively. Unfortunately, her long hair hit a shelf of bobblehead dolls, knocking them to the floor.”

In this scene, diction accentuates the physical comedy. The adverbs emphasize the humorous contrast between Audre’s intentions and the outcome of her actions; she “[d]esperately” wants to take control of the situation but “[u]nfortunately” makes it more awkward with her attempt to behave “seductively.”

“He’d spent all morning surfing Rockaway Beach in Queens, which had zero in common with the beaches back home. At Half Moon Bay, his favorite beach on the San Francisco Peninsula, the waves were smooth and mellow. Perfectly chill barrels you could ride forever. The sand breaks here in New York, at Rockaway, made the waves fast and unpredictable. Like the city itself.”

Williams uses surfing to show Bash’s struggle to adapt to his new environment. Similes liken life on the East and West Coasts to their respective beaches, and precise adjectives build up the contrast between “smooth and mellow” California and “fast and unpredictable” New York.

“Seven minutes had passed since he set the timer. In seven minutes, his whole world had changed. In seven minutes, he had lost everything. The timing of it was always in the back of his mind. In the shower. On the subway. At school.”

The repetition of “In seven minutes” at the beginning of the second and third sentences is an example of anaphora that underscores a grave tone and conveys Bash’s disorientation and shock. The fragments at the end of this excerpt reflect how Bash’s life is shattered when his father disowns him. Bash’s fixation with timing his activities in increments of seven minutes reveals how his painful past haunts him every day.

“Audre suddenly felt uber-aware of everything—that her short, thin dress was drenched and clinging to her body. That her skin was tingly. That the sunrays were making her dizzy. Or was it him? His soaked, sculpted skin glistening in the sun? His lanky, outrageously tall frame? The fact that he’d just rescued her like Superman? (No, Aquaman.) Wet Bash was more than she was prepared to handle.”

Williams builds up the romantic tension between the main characters through her use of tactile imagery like “tingly” and “drenched and clinging to her body,” and visual imagery like “skin glistening in the sun.” The allusions to the superheroes Superman and Aquaman emphasize how dashing and handsome Audre finds Bash after his daring rescue.

“She was so earthy-baddie cute, Reshma was thunderstruck. Micro-locs tumbling to her shoulders, a few decorated with gold cuffs. Radiant complexion the color of Reshma’s favorite flower, the toffee rose. Freckles across her nose. And, oh, a blinding smile with an adorable gap between her two front teeth.”

Reshma’s instant attraction to Clio is illustrated through her use of precise adjectives like “[r]adiant,” “adorable,” and “thunderstruck.” The comparison between Clio’s complexion and Reshma’s “favorite flower” highlights her appreciation of the young woman’s beauty. The stylistic use of fragments emphasizes Reshma’s sense of wonder as she takes note of the different features that draw her to Clio.

“Audre stopped. Shyly, she glanced at Bash through her lashes. He looked like he’d just seen his first natural rainbow—all twinkly eyes and a wide, delighted smile. With a wild yelp, he started vigorously clapping.”

The simile comparing Bash’s reaction to Audre’s speech to the joy of seeing “his first natural rainbow” illustrates his excitement at seeing her in her element. This moment is particularly meaningful because Audre is deeply disappointed that her mother missed her speech, and Bash offers her the appreciation and pride that she longs for.

“Audre wanted to squeal. She wanted to cartwheel around the room. She wanted to run downstairs and high-five Barry. She really wanted to call Reshma, until she remembered she was probably asleep in an Argentinean five-star hotel.”

The repetition of the phrase “She wanted” emphasizes Audre’s giddy elation at Bash’s thoughtfulness in retrieving her phone. Because she is usually so restrained, her desire to do something exuberant like “cartwheel around the room” indicates Bash’s strong effect on her emotions.

“Opening up to Reshma? It never ended well. And in this case, it could be as explosive as tossing a lit match into a bucket of gasoline. If Reshma inserted herself into this situation, Audre would die.”

The simile likening Reshma’s meddling to “tossing a lit match into a bucket of gasoline” underscores Audre’s concern that Reshma might damage Bash’s relationship with Clio. Audre’s claim that she “would die” if Resma interferes is an example of hyperbole, an exaggeration that fits within the novel’s tone and genre as a young adult romantic comedy. In addition, the excerpt foreshadows Reshma’s efforts to woo Clio and the complications that ensue.

“It’s hard enough pretending that everything about you doesn’t throw me off! Your brain, your perfume, your bravery, even your arrogance. Especially your arrogance. And your crazy-beautiful skin and lashes and dimples that all blur together into an explosion of cute every time you smile.”

Polysyndeton is the stylistic addition of coordinating conjunctions where none are grammatically necessary. Williams uses this technique in the phrase “your crazy-beautiful skin and lashes and dimples.” This usage of polysyndeton gives Bash’s thoughts a breathless tone that conveys how smitten he is with Audre.

“Her disembodied head was as glamorous as ever—CoverGirl red lipstick, shoulder-length bobbed waves, and cheekbones kissed by angels. She was sixty-five, looked forty-nine, and sounded eighty with her raspy, cigarette-inflected, Louisiana bayou drawl. In her accent, the line sounded like ‘Ahh both y’all smokin’ black tahh HAIR-win?’”

In literature, dialect refers to a variety of a language spoken by a particular group of people and includes differences in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Williams captures Grandma Lizette’s “Louisiana bayou drawl” by spelling ‘I’ as “Ahh” and ‘tar’ as “tahh,” her dialect adding to the humor of her scathing remark. In addition, visual and auditory imagery enhances the depiction of the glamorous former model and acerbic businesswoman with descriptions of her “CoverGirl red lipstick” and “raspy, cigarette-inflected” voice.

“Rule 8: If you grow up around older family members (aunts, uncles, grandparents), ask questions about their past. When you don’t know your family history, you can feel like an escaped balloon-no anchor, just floating away to who-knows-where. Alone.”

The simile comparing someone who doesn’t know their family history to “an escaped balloon” shows how Audre feels lost and untethered because of her mother’s secrets. The one-word fragment “Alone” emphasizes the teenager’s painful feelings of loneliness. By formatting the passage as a rule in Audre’s self-help book, Williams shows that the main character no longer believes she has all the answers, as she did at the start of the novel.

“Bash was standing under a linden tree, a ubiquitous presence on Brooklyn sidewalks and in parks. Yellow blossoms breathed out a sweet, soothing scent. Blended with the streetlights, the reflection from the blossoms cast a warm glow on Audre’s face. Hypnotized, Bash was rooted to the spot.”

A joyful, romantic mood is established through sensory imagery like the “[y]ellow blossoms” and the “sweet, soothing scent” of the linden flowers. Adding to the scene’s romantic atmosphere, Williams intentionally arranges the characters to invoke the famous balcony scene in William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, in which a young man gazes up at his love interest’s window. Later in this chapter, Audre tells Bash that they can only be friends, and Williams adds to this plot twist’s tension by constructing and then subverting parallels to the most famous romance in Western literature.

“Four-point-oh but I got a fatty

J/K about the ass but I’m still a baddie

I’m talking to this kid, yo his name is Manny

I get thleepy… I mean, SLEEPY after nine but I gotta rally

Let’s keep it a bean, tho, I came with Bash

Hot like fire yo he gives me, um… what else rhymes with Bash… oh, I got it, HEAT RASH

Can’t stay all night, bitch, I gotta dash

Apple’s a broke bitch but I got that cash”

Audre’s improvised rap provides humor. Williams indicates the teenager’s inebriation by spelling ‘sleepy’ as “thleepy,” and Audre’s asides to herself, such as “what else rhymes with Bash,” add to the passage’s comedy. The barb that the girl flirting with Bash is “broke” and the simile describing the boy as “[h]ot like fire” betray her attraction to him.

“You fought for me. You fought. For me?”

Williams demonstrates how repetition and punctuation can impact a sentence’s meaning. The repetition of the words “You fought” highlights that Bash is a pacifist, making his fight with Ellison more significant. By repeating the words “For me?” as a question, Audre shows that she now realizes how important she is to Bash. Audre feels that her family members fail to prioritize her, making his protective gesture all the more meaningful to her.

“Bash just stared down at it. All the breath left his body. His heart thundered; his face contorted. In one fell swoop, Jennifer killed something that meant so much to him.”

Bash’s diction conveys the hurt and anger he feels when Jennifer accidentally breaks the Smurf lunchbox. The verb “killed” emphasizes the destruction she carelessly caused as well as the object’s great importance to Bash. The lunchbox functions as a symbol of the lessons that Audre and Bash gain from their relationship, adding to its narrative significance.

“I wanted you.’ The air felt full—like the heavy stillness right before the sky opens up, sending down a crashing, thunderous storm. They sat there, hopelessly tangled in each other’s gaze. Looking at her, Bash knew that he was ready to take it all on. His sadness, her sadness, their wild attraction, this tender connection. In a way that was both certain and unexplainable, he wanted it all.”

Williams creates a mood of anticipation and romance with the simile that compares the silence that follows Bash’s words to “the heavy stillness right before […] a crashing, thunderous storm.” The repetition of “wanted” underscores the strength of Bash’s desire and his resolve to stop running from his feelings for Audre. The contrast between the precise adjectives “wild” and “tender” reflects the complexity of the teenagers’ connection.

“She sucked in her breath when the needle sharply touched her skin again. There was a sting, but truly? There was something satisfying in the feeling. The idea that even though it hurt, she was badass enough to push through it. She felt powerful. It was all so meditative, the buzzing of the needle, the scent of the candle, their almost worshipful silence.”

Sensory imagery highlights how fully Audre is immersed in the present as Bash gives her a tattoo. The “sting” of the needle provides tactile imagery, the teenagers’ “almost worshipful silence” and “the buzzing of the needle” provide auditory imagery, and “the scent of the candle” provides olfactory imagery. Audre’s ability to live within the present, rather than worry about the past or plan for the future, shows that she is Learning to Embrace Authentic Experience.