The Woman in Suite 11

In the time between The Woman in Cabin 10 and The Woman in Suite 11, Lo has two children: Eli and Teddy. She has stayed home to raise them, but now that they’ve reached kindergarten and pre-K, Lo is desperate to reestablish her career as a travel writer. She wants to change her children’s perceptions of mothers, have her work published again, and reclaim her professional identity.

As the novel begins, Lo is getting home from a job interview. This immediately establishes a tension between the domestic and public spheres. She has been “stuck at home with the kids for six fuckin’ years” (12). Lo is ready to spend more time with adults and get out of the house. However, she’s upset to see how messy the house became when Judah was in charge of the children while Lo was at the interview. She still wants to manage the household and monitor her children; she hasn’t learned to give up control yet.

Lo is aghast when she hears her children talk about their perceptions of mothers. Teddy tells her, “Mommies don’t have to work” (18). He has never seen her work; she has only been a stay-at-home mother during his short life.