The One-In-A-Million Boy

In the final chapters, Ona’s memory of Lithuanian returns to her in a flood when she receives her birth records and recovers a deep memory of a long-lost brother who died during their ocean journey to the United States. In a dark but poetic connection between the different parts of her life, her brother’s body was discarded at sea, just like Frankie’s men were discarded in the war. These strategic similarities emphasize the many connections between disparate life events, and it is clear that Ona’s family and early losses have shaped her in ways that she does not even realize. In this context, language itself becomes symbolic of restoration and remembrance, especially as Ona “let[s] the sweet rain of words soak through the pocked surface of her life” (292). This vivid metaphor suggests that a restored language can breathe new life into neglected memories, just as the rain can restore a parched and barren landscape.

A particularly significant memory is revealed in the boy’s interviews when Ona speaks of hundreds of hummingbirds falling out of the sky during a trip to Texas with Louise. This moment embodies a surreal, symbolic image of beauty interrupted by catastrophe, much like the moment of the boy’s death amid a hundred sweet-toned birdcalls. As the story winds to its conclusion, the author deliberately invokes these vividly intense memories to suggest that life itself is nothing more than a series of disjointed but uniquely meaningful moments. In many ways, Ona’s bonds with Quinn and Belle allows her to reintegrate important truths that had long lain unrecognized in the scattered fields of her memory. For example, with the discovery of Howard’s music, which Quinn’s band plays a mashup of with Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” Quinn breathes new life into Howard’s underrated talent, and they all celebrate the idea that “[d]ecades after the mortal end of his tortured life, Howard Stanhope had risen again to make a thing of beauty” (305). When Quinn tells Ona that Howard’s songs were written for her, she is gratified to know that her husband did truly love her in some form, and even Quinn takes heart from the idea that perhaps his own music will be similarly understood and appreciated one day.

The Life-Changing Power of Unlikely Friendships is also emphasized through Ona’s descriptions of her renewed bond with Louise in their old age. Notably, Ona says that she didn’t feel old until Louise died, and the novel portrays their bond as being just as powerful—if not more so—than fully realized romantic love. Although Ona could not openly act on her love for Louise, she loved her in her own way, and a similar sentiment drove her connection with the boy, as their unusual bond across the generations represents yet another nontraditional but powerful friendship.

Quinn, meanwhile, undergoes quiet but meaningful growth, and his arc demonstrates The Lasting Influence of Grief by suggesting that although a person’s sorrow never fades entirely, it does change its form. Ironically, Quinn never fully appreciated his son until the boy was gone, and he therefore finds a sense of peace upon “inheriting” Ona’s friendship with the boy. This shift takes place not in a transactional sense but as a symbolic continuation of his son’s emotional legacy. Now, although Quinn and Oda continue to cherish their friendship, Quinn visits less frequently because their roles have changed. He also lets go of Belle and finds his place as a manager for the Christian rock band, relinquishing his superficial dream to be center stage. Through his connection with Ona, he finds emotional healing and a maternal relationship that grounds him, and his instinctive concern over her well-being shows just how deeply she has become a part of his life.

The story’s climax brings emotional closure while simultaneously maintaining the story’s honest tone. When Ona decides to return to Laurentas and apologize for her behavior, this act stands contains humility and courage in equal measure, illustrating her ongoing evolution as a person and concluding her character arc. Likewise, because the boy’s endeavors began the narrative and fueled his loved ones’ actions after his death, the author fittingly ends the novel with a description of the boy in his final moments of life. The final chapter shows that the boy has found a way to appreciate music, and it also reveals that his last wish was for his father and Ona to become friends—a wish that is eventually fulfilled. The final use of third-person narration, which is reserved solely for the boy, gives him a lasting identity beyond being merely “the boy,” and the final words of the narrative thus honor his life as being more than a mere vessel for others’ development.