A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2019

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Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 1, Chapters 1-5

Part 1, Chapters 6-11

Part 2, Chapters 12-16

Part 2, Chapters 17-22

Part 2, Chapters 23-28

Part 3, Chapters 29-33

Part 3, Chapters 34-38

Part 3, Chapters 39-43

Part 3, Chapters 44-48

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Book Club Questions

Themes

The Importance of Finding Out the Truth

Pip’s quest for the truth is the focus of her senior capstone project and sets in motion many of the book’s major events. While her initial drive to find out what happened to Andie stems from her positive impressions of Sal Singh and her disbelief that he could have killed Andie, her quest for the truth soon reaches much further as her investigation reveals more about the key players and the many secrets the people of Fairview are keeping.

In the opening chapters, Pip reveals her need to get to the bottom of things because of her personal connection with Sal. These feelings inform Pip’s motivations as a character and explain why she has a personal stake in the matter. Gradually, however, other motivations for Pip’s investigation come to light. For one, Pip thinks about how difficult it must be for the Singhs to live in Fairview after their son has been accused of killing Andie, and Ravi says as much, telling Pip he has not been allowed to properly grieve for his brother. Her investigation, then, is not purely personal, but seems to come from a desire to serve the greater good.

As events unfold, what may have started as a personal concern for Pip soon grows far beyond it. Once Pip has successfully cleared Sal’s name and discovered that, rather than dying by suicide, he was murdered and framed by Mr. Ward, she is not ready to end her investigation. Finding out the rest of the story becomes a stronger desire than ever and a chance to right, or at least expose, some of the many wrongs she has uncovered. Having put the pieces together about Max’s rape of Becca and Andie’s supplying of drugs to Max and others, Pip puts her own life in danger to finally air out the whole story behind Andie’s death.

While the lengths Pip goes to are sometimes questionable—and she herself questions them repeatedly—her investigation does much to help the people of Fairview. Pip’s willingness to consider every angle and to view everyone as a possible suspect helps her out time and again as she adds new people to her persons of interest list and carefully considers their involvement based on hard evidence. Once her investigation is complete, she uses the platform it gives her to encourage the people of Fairview to consider their own role in judging events before they had all the facts. At the end of the story, Pip appears poised to continue to use her desire for truth to do good as she reveals she’s been accepted into Columbia, a top-notch journalism school known for its track in investigative reporting.

The Search for Identity

Throughout the course of the novel, Pip faces issues that force her to confront and reevaluate her identity. These issues include the challenge posed by her college application essay as well as the situations she finds herself in that make her question her morality. The dangerous circumstances Pip is willing to face also pose questions about who she is and what she is willing to do. Using these conflicts, the author gives the reader insight into the formation of Pip’s character.

Pip mentions her struggle to write her personal essay several times throughout the book. This struggle results from Pip, self-admittedly, not quite knowing who she is and thus what to write about. The stress of completing her essay is overtaken by her obsession to solve the case. When finally forced to complete the essay, Pip even states she does not know who she is without a task to complete and devote all her attention to. This, she writes in her essay, is why she decided to solve a murder for her capstone project. Faced with reflecting on who she is, Pip still relates her identity back to the project, raising the question of the characteristics she and the reader discover she possesses along the way, such as her dogged determination and ability to boldly confront situations about which she is passionate.

Pip’s identity also comes into question in the moral dilemmas she faces through the choices she must make in the novel. Pip lies to gain information several times, such as when she rigs the Wards’ printer settings and when she gives her friends false motivations for going to the calamity party. She admits that the more she lies, the easier it becomes. Another moral dilemma she faces occurs when she has the photographic evidence proving Sal’s innocence but must choose between turning it in or protecting Naomi due to Naomi’s involvement in the hit-and-run. Pip narrates that she does not know what the right or wrong thing is to do anymore. These internal conflicts force Pip to ponder whether her moral compass has become warped and thus who she has become.

The dangerous situations Pip encounters also push the limits of her identity. Pip receives several threatening notes that she ignores. She also boldly confronts characters, such as Howie Bowers and Becca Bell, with accusations, resulting in potentially or actually perilous outcomes. Pip even ends up losing her dog as a result of not halting her investigation. She wonders if she has gone too far for her investigation—putting her loved ones and self at risk. These choices cause both Pip and the reader to examine her identity because the question is raised of how far she is willing to go and what she is willing to lose to discover the truth.

Public Shame of the Accused’s Family

Public shame emerges throughout the novel as the reader discovers how the accused’s family, including Ravi, is treated. This theme manifests in Ravi’s internal feelings, the public’s external treatment of him, and the demonization of Sal himself. These elements work to allow both Pip and the reader to arrive at a conclusion about the role the community plays in cases such as this one.

Ravi’s internal conflict about the situation becomes apparent when he admits to Pip that he feels unable to even grieve for Sal because of Sal’s characterization in the media as a monster. Ravi feels grieving would make it appear to the community that he was siding with a murderer. The public pressure placed on Ravi confuses his feeling toward Sal, showing the power public shame has on Ravi’s personal feelings.

Several instances of public displays of shame toward Ravi also occur in the novel. Cara questions aloud what people will think when they see Pip entering the Singhs’ house, which has been defaced with spray paint. Additionally, when Ravi attempts to pay a cashier at a grocery store, she refuses to touch the money he offers her. Ravi also alludes to the bullying he underwent while in school. These examples illustrate outright treatment that reflects the public shame Ravi experiences.

The demonization of Sal by the community and the press is another way in which public shame is interwoven into the text. The primary example is represented by Stanley Forbes’s take on the case. Not only does Stanley presume Sal is guilty without Sal having been convicted of the crime, but he also blames Sal’s Indian ethnicity, claiming the values of his culture mean he would have treated women with less respect and therefore likely killed Andie out of possessiveness. These bold assertions frame the press’s characterization of Sal, revealing a demonization of his memory and emphasizing the theme of public shame.

Pip’s concluding remarks in her capstone presentation bring the theme of public shame to a head. She addresses the community, stating that they all played a role in the Bell case. Their treatment of Sal’s memory turned him into a monster and his family into a target. She warns that they—as a community—must do better.