Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, gender discrimination, and addiction.

Survival against difficult odds and resilience in the face of adversity are important ideas within this novel. Valerie’s story engages most overtly with this theme, but Bev and Lena also demonstrate resilience, and as the novel progresses, it reveals the sources of each woman’s inner strength, linking that strength to a deep and abiding sense of self.

Valerie’s trail name, “Sparrow,” establishes the basic thematic pattern: She chose it because it was a childhood nickname and because her mother always told her that sparrows are survivors. True to her nickname, Valerie does survive alone in the woods for much longer than the search team thinks possible, aided in no small part by her basic character, including her ability to connect with those she meets: Because Valerie managed to convince Daniel that she was not a threat, he retrieved her pack for her before leaving her behind. Just as importantly, Valerie’s empathy for Daniel underscores that crisis has not altered who she is; despite her sense that the pandemic has drained her, Valerie retains her essential traits. This survival of self intertwines with her determination to survive physically, with the latter encapsulated by her statement “I absolutely refuse to die out here” (85). In addition to taking various commonsense measures—drinking filtered rainwater, limiting her movement to conserve energy, etc.—she also draws on a well of inner resolve, retreating into self-reflection to stay grounded and connected with herself. In the final journal entry before her rescue, she reflects that she can “taste childhood puddles” in the rainwater she drinks (256), underscoring the long roots of her will to survive.

Though different from Valerie in temperament, Bev shares a quiet certainty about who she is that lends her strength in hard times. Bev had a difficult childhood and emerged scathed but functional. After having to parent both her mother and her siblings, Bev established herself in a career where she could finally feel at home and where her love of the outdoors and “mannish” traits were finally assets rather than sources of disappointment. Though many of her colleagues and supervisors have nevertheless seen her as less capable and competent because she is a woman, this only drove her to work twice as hard to prove that she is where she belongs. That hard work is a survival tactic, but it has also become a source of strength and made her better at her job.

Lena similarly struggles with traditional gender roles and childhood trauma. As a highly intelligent child who struggled socially, she had difficulty forming deep relationships, and while she survived these challenges, her adult life has similarly been marked by hardship—in particular, her experiences of marriage and motherhood. In one sense, she serves as a cautionary tale, revealing how a strong sense of identity can promote survival while also calcifying into an unhealthy coping mechanism: Lena’s interest in science and observation is real, but it is also a shield she uses to distance herself from her loved ones in an effort to spare herself pain. Yet that same interest also forms the basis for the relationships she does have, both as she maintains friendships with Warren and Daniel and as she forges a meaningful relationship with her grandson. Ultimately, her arc thus underscores that resilience begins with knowing and accepting who one is.