Faith vs. reality
For unknown reasons, Del wants to find God. She needs to know that He exists and that our lives are supervised by Him. Such a passionate desire to understand God creates a conflict between Ada and Del, for Ada can’t forget about her childhood and a life with a religious fanatic as a mother. To prove her point, Ada uses World War II as an example and asks, what kind of God would let it happen. It is as clear as a day that little Del can’t give any proper answer, for her mother’s harsh reasoning confuses her even more, and the concept of God becomes even more difficult to understand.
Women’s empowerment and other progressive ideas vs. traditionalism
Ada puts her heart and soul into numerous attempts to transform the society. She sells encyclopedias to spread knowledge among people, who don’t need it. Her progressive ideas on women’s rights, God, education, and even the future earned her bad fame as an eccentric. Ada’s story proves that one of the most important aspects of a happy life is an appropriate place. If Ada lived in a big city, where her thoughts wouldn’t be so shocking, she would be happy and, what is more important, accepted. Although she has a husband and two children, Ada is lonely; her passion for new knowledge is her only companion.
Coming of age
Del grows up, and it is a clear underestimation to say that the process of coming of age is a difficult one. Having a sharp mind, she notices the things the majority of people ignore and it frightens her. Del suspects that her mother would be happier without them, living somewhere in a big city, and working at school, but she doesn’t ask whether it is so or not, for she is afraid of the truth. She looks for God and doesn’t find an exact answer, she falls in love and falls out of it, she learns about death, the rigid rules of the little society of Jubilee, and even overwhelming passion. To read these stories is to grow up with her.
