53 pages • 1 hour read
Steven RowleyThe Guncle Abroad
Steven RowleyFiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2024A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Part 1, Chapters 13-15Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 1: “Four Weeks Earlier”
Part 1, Chapter 13 Summary
Patrick and Clara sit at the beach on the lake with Maisie and Grant. Patrick reflects on how different his life is now compared to five years ago when he was living alone and isolated in Palm Springs. Maisie interrupts his memory, arriving with lemons from the hotel for him to highlight her hair with. As Patrick works on her hair, Maisie once again presses him to stop the wedding. When he won’t agree to, Maisie dares him by saying that she will ask Palmina instead, knowing that it will annoy Patrick. Patrick dislikes how effortlessly cool Palmina is and worries that the kids like her more than him. When a man in a speedo walks by, both Clara and Patrick catch each other checking him out. Clara is clear that she is on the rebound from her divorce and is looking for a man at this wedding.
Palmina is also at the beach, and Patrick cannot help but watch her every move, feeling the jealousy rise within him. When he pokes fun at Palmina, Clara calls Patrick out for being dismissive of women. Patrick pushes back against this, saying that he has many women friends. When Clara scoffs at this, Patrick tries to prove it, but he can only come up with Cassie, his assistant, as a friend. They continue to squabble, and though their relationship is much better than it once was, both admit that they do occasionally miss their little arguments. Patrick asks when Clara will see her stepchildren now that she is divorced. She tells him that they plan to stay with her after she returns from the wedding, which will be an important time for her to connect with them. Patrick realizes how nice it is to have someone with him while watching Maisie and Grant, knowing that he can let his guard down and that someone else is watching them. It makes him sympathize with Greg and feel more confident in his decision to marry Livia. They watch the water and see Palmina again. Clara suggests that Patrick and Palmina could be good friends, and Patrick scoffs. Clara declares that his feelings toward Palmina are based on the fact that Maisie and Grant are obsessed with her in the same way that they once were with Patrick.
Part 1, Chapter 14 Summary
Patrick returns to his room and feels exhausted. The full weight of the trip hits him and he is excited to rest, finally. Before he can, however, the phone rings, and he finds Cassie on the line, calling from early in the morning in the US. She once again calls about possible roles, but instead of discussing them, Patrick asks her if they are friends. Cassie is happy to know that Patrick thinks of her as a friend, but she is taken off guard when he begins asking her about her dating life. Though she is seeing someone, Patrick admits that he is curious to see if she would ever date Greg, wondering if he could once again set up his brother with a friend.
Finally, Patrick allows Cassie to tell him why she calls. Cassie explains that a struggling Broadway revival of Grease wants to bring him on as Vince Fontaine, the DJ who teaches the students the hand-jive, to boost ticket sales. Patrick considers the role, particularly because he will not need to sing, and asks Cassie if he can think about it. She tells him to consider and let her know as soon as the wedding is over. She also warns Patrick not to meddle with Greg’s relationship and leave it be. Patrick hangs up and considers the role in Grease, worrying that he is too old to be in a musical about high school but thinking of it as a new beginning and remembering how he and Sara were once obsessed with the musical themselves.
Part 1, Chapter 15 Summary
Patrick joins Maisie, Palmina, Clara, and Livia for a bachelorette party while Greg and Grant spend a bachelors’ night together at the hotel. Patrick and the girls pile into a limousine for a drive to Milan. Patrick quickly notices that he is in unfamiliar territory as the girls begin to chat. Livia compliments Maisie’s new highlights, and Maisie actually smiles at her soon-to-be stepmother. Patrick realizes that Maisie has a community of women around her for the first time, a system of support that he cannot provide. When Clara announces how happy she is that she is through menopause, Livia and Palmina cheer, making Patrick uncomfortable. When the news of Patrick’s offer on Broadway arises, Palmina embarrasses him by saying that he will teach the students to give “hand jobs,” not teach them the “hand-jive” (184). Palmina apologizes, saying that it is her poor English with a smirk, but Patrick sees through her.
In Milan, the limousine drops them off at the flagship Prada store, open after hours for Livia. The women and Patrick will have their own private shopping spree with personal tailors. Before they go in, Patrick squeezes Maisie’s hand in reassurance, aware of how uncomfortable she is with girly clothing. In the store, women bring around racks of clothing for the party members to look at, and when Palmina picks out what looks like a ski suit, one of the women rushes to grab it, confused about why it is there. Palmina refuses to give it up, loving the androgynous fit and style possibilities. Patrick sees Maisie admiring Palmina and the outfit. While the adults try on their outfits, Maisie and Patrick hang back, Maisie unsure if she wants to try any clothing. Patrick assures her that she does not need to be a fashionista but can be anyone she wants.
Clara, Livia, and Palmina show Patrick and Maisie their outfits, and when Patrick tries to make a Pretty Woman reference, no one understands him. In the confusion, the Prada women seem offended, and Patrick finds himself defending his humor to no avail. Soon, the women are all commenting about Patrick, and he promises not to speak any longer. Livia takes Maisie to the dressing room, promising that she has something special for her. When Maisie returns in her new outfit, Patrick sees a confident Maisie, happy to see herself in the mirror. The outfit is a shirt and pants, and Maisie wears it effortlessly. Maisie declares that she does not want to be a model but rather a teen that fights climate change. Palmina suggests she raise her fists then, to fight the patriarchy, and when Patrick questions how the patriarchy causes global warming, all the women laugh. Patrick feels jealousy toward Palmina again, convinced that she will try to influence Maisie. Maisie notices his silent anger and asks if he does not like her outfit. Patrick quickly assures her that he does.
Part 1, Chapters 13-15 Analysis
At times, Patrick struggles to accept Livia as a possible new member of the family and questions Greg’s decisions to marry so quickly after the passing of Sara. However, after meeting Livia and seeing more of Greg with the kids, he comes to realize that perhaps this woman Greg loves can be a great addition, not only for the children but to give Greg “the luxury of exhaling” (168). In a lavish setting of a Lake Como hotel, the text suggests that the real “luxury” is actually loving support. Patrick comes to realize that a partner can fundamentally change certain aspects of life. While watching the kids on the beach with Clara, he realizes that having another person reduces his responsibility and allows him to relax and enjoy the moment more. He realizes that Greg needs this, and with Livia, he can experience The Impact of Love on Self-Perception. With Livia, Greg will no longer be a single parent but a supported partner. This will allow Greg to lower his guard and enjoy life with Maisie and Grant more. The love he and Livia share for each other will change both of their roles in life, as Greg becomes part of a team again and Livia becomes a mother.
When Patrick hears of the opportunity to return to the stage and play a part in Grease on Broadway he considers how his age impacts this opportunity. He is nearing 50, and to play a role in a play about high schoolers seems odd to him. He wonders not only at the physical differences between himself and the many other characters, but also comedy of the situation. He begins to think of how he can play a younger a character with his age often showing: “Hanging upside down helped counteract gravity, and helped him look rested and fresh. But he doubted they’d let him play the role hanging from a trapeze, unless this was some sort of production from Cirque du Soleil” (175). Patrick often tries to address The Tension of Aging with comedy to deflect his own anxiety and insecurity. He strays to the absurd with a reference to Cirque du Soleil to distract from his actual worries that he is reaching a point in his life at which his age will begin restricting his job opportunities in acting. Patrick has ways of keeping himself looking young, but he also debates if he wants to and whether or not he should accept aging and chart a new path. In some ways, this role is an opportunity for him do to so, as it is a limited, small role that will afford him time to chart out his next moves.
The bachelorette party exacerbates Patrick’s internal conflicts. He is aware that he sticks out as the only man, and his jealousy of Palmina pits him against the rest of the ladies, which results in Maisie believing that Patrick does not like her new outfit. Patrick immediately regrets his stance and apologizes to ease Maisie’s pain, at which point “[h]e just wished her mother were alive to see her” (196). Patrick thinks of Sara in this moment, which highlights the gendered dynamics of the situation, as Maisie is unused to situations like this, not having a present maternal figure in her life. Patrick tries to fill this void when he can, but he sees how quickly Maisie can be hurt and knows that like him, she thinks of her mother. Patrick knows that Sara would love to share this moment with Maisie, and feels this grief in the same moment in which Maisie takes a step forward in her own development. Rowley highlights The Persistence of Grief because it intertwines with several of the conflicts in the text, regarding both childhood development and male presence among female community.
Unlock all 53 pages of this Study GuidePlus, gain access to 8,800+ more expert-written Study Guides.
Including features:
Related Titles
By Steven Rowley
