The Book of Lost Hours

Lisavet’s book is a symbol of the moral responsibility that comes with preserving memory. She uses the book to store stolen and rescued memories, protecting moments that institutions like the CIA deem unimportant or dangerous. The book therefore emphasizes themes of both How Power Shapes the Historical Record and The Value of Human Connection, as Lisavet’s impulse to save memories is rooted in empathy. As she fights the battle against institutionalized erasure, the book she preserves represents the survival of memory itself, living on despite oppressive regimes’ best efforts to rewrite and erase the past.

As the novel progresses, the book’s meaning darkens, as Lisavet uses it to hide Ernest’s memories of her and the truth of Amelia’s identity. In this way, the book comes to represent the very impulses that Lisavet once resisted, as she uses it to control what others are allowed to remember. Lisavet’s book thus mirrors her own transformation from idealistic guardian to manipulator. The dissolution of Lisavet’s book during the collapse of the time space affirms the inherent harm of seeking to own or contain history, even for good ends. By letting the book and the memories within it scatter into the stars, the novel argues that remembrance must be collective, fluid, and free. Lisavet’s book thus encapsulates the novel’s central warning: When history is dictated by one person or group, violence becomes inevitable.