50 pages • 1 hour read
John Corey WhaleyHighly Illogical Behavior
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2016A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 11-12
Part 1: “Spring
Chapter 11 Summary: “Solomon Reed”
With Lisa’s imminent arrival for her second visit, it suddenly strikes Solomon that he should tell her that he is gay. He hasn’t told anyone yet because the way he figures it, “why would he ever need to acknowledge his sexuality if he didn’t ever plan on leaving the house again?” (76).
When Lisa arrives at the front door, Solomon is in the living room with his father. He is seized by the beginnings of a panic attack, and his father helps him to his room to sit and count. Valerie distracts Lisa and makes excuses for Solomon’s lateness. She also asks Lisa if Solomon is likeable and begs her to stay his friend until he gets outside and into the pool. Solomon recovers and comes downstairs, where he and Lisa put a comedy movie on the T.V.
Solomon confides to Lisa that he hadn’t been picking matching socks as his mother said, but was in the beginning throes of a panic attack. Lisa tells him his mother told her about the pool, and when Solomon jokes that his family hopes they’ll fall in love, he blurts out the truth about his sexuality. Lisa is supportive and unfazed, but this is a major moment for Solomon as she is the first person he’s ever told. They settle into the movie, pleasantly connected by the quickly shared secrets and shows of support.
Chapter 12 Summary: “Lisa Praytor”
Before she leaves Solomon’s house, she asks him if she can give him a hug. As she holds him tightly, Lisa realizes that she truly means the emotions behind the hug and acknowledges how close she already is to Solomon. Their friendship is moving quickly, which “was enough to help her ignore that little pang of guilt she was feeling in her stomach” (85). Solomon tells her she can tell Clark about his sexuality to put Clark’s mind at ease about Lisa spending time with another boy.
On the phone with Clark, Lisa wonders aloud if part of Solomon’s mental health issues is that “He doesn’t know how to be himself because he thinks it doesn’t matter who he is” (87). Clark points out that Solomon must have a stronger sense of self than Lisa thinks, as he tells her so quickly that he is gay. Clark also points out that Lisa could just make something up for her scholarship, but Lisa says that she wants to help Solomon, that “It’s not just about the scholarship anymore” (87).
The next day at her house, Lisa discovers that her stepfather Ron is back, which makes her happy for her mom. She is studying at the table when Solomon calls her to chat, and she senses that he wants her to come over. With good humor, Lisa teaches him that being a friend means inviting friends over without pretense.
They play chess together at Solomon’s house, an idea Lisa had because she read that patients can be soothed and distracted by the game, thereby opening up more with their doctors. She asks Solomon what his biggest fear is, and he looks up “from the board and right into her eyes, like he was asking her what she thought she was doing without saying anything” (93). Later, Solomon gives Lisa comic books to pass on to Clark and agrees that he’s open to meeting him.
Chapters 11-12 Analysis
Chapters 11 and 12 portray significant new character developments. The revelation of Solomon’s sexuality is important because it establishes that Solomon will not fall in love with Lisa, which would make their friendship much more complicated. Solomon’s sexuality is also important because coming out of the closet is an extremely intimate, vulnerable moment. That Solomon reveals his sexuality to Lisa after knowing her for only a couple of days emphasizes the deep trust Solomon already feels in her, a potential concern for the reader. The reader is torn between two opposing feelings. On the one hand, it is beautiful to see Solomon finally have someone his own age to talk to and confide in. On the other hand, the dramatic irony is all too poignant here; Solomon believes he is confiding in a friend, but the reader knows that Lisa also sees him as a patient.
Lisa’s plan is going better than she had anticipated, a true sign that Solomon, despite all his fears and anxieties, has been waiting and ready for a friend. When Solomon’s mother Valerie asks Lisa to promise to stay his friend until he goes into the pool, the reader is invited to feel a tinge of foreshadowed concern. It is too much to ask that Lisa take on the responsibility of getting Solomon into the pool, even though she believes that it’s something she can do. Solomon’s family is dealing with a loved one suffering from a form of mental illness that is debilitating. The reader wonders if Valerie really believes that a teenage girl can fix what therapists and family couldn’t, or if there is any fixing to be done at all.
Now that Valerie is embracing Lisa in her circle of trust, the reader is invited to let down some defense of Solomon. If Valerie sees something positive in her son’s sudden bizarre friendship with a stranger, there truly is something good about what’s unfolding. Certainly, it is a relief to see Solomon opening his life to someone else. When he cedes to the idea of meeting Clark, Whaley foreshadows the potential for more happiness with a second friendship, or more disappointment if Clark and Solomon do not get along. Whaley invites the reader to feel hopeful about this potential friendship as previous chapters have revealed that Clark is separating himself from his friends and is a fellow Star Trek and comics fan.
Despite the secret Lisa is keeping, she does express genuine care for Solomon, and she encourages him to think of himself as more than just two things: gay and crazy.
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By John Corey Whaley
