58 pages • 1 hour read
One Day in December
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Themes
The Pains and Advantages of Coming of Age
The characters in One Day in December try to make decisions informed by the context of their age and experience. Each time Jack or Laurie has the opportunity to pursue their love, they are at a different age and place in their lives. Laurie and Jack are on individual journeys trying to figure out how to navigate their many changing responsibilities, desires, and goals. Once they think they have one part of their life figured out, they quickly realize that there are other elements that require navigation. The coming-of-age theme is connected to the romance genre: By getting to know herself better, Laurie is able to figure out what she truly needs and wants from love. It takes years for her and Jack to get to a place of individual self-worth and joy, but when they do, it is because as they pass through their twenties, they become better at being honest with themselves.
The friendship between Laurie and Sarah starts to change not when Sarah begins dating Jack, but when Laurie and Sarah move out of their youthful, university-days apartment. In symbolically saying goodbye to that part of their lives, both young women must forge ahead with careers and love interests, not alone but certainly without the comforting safety net the other person provided for so long. When Laurie first sees Jack from her seat on the bus, she hasn’t yet learned from life experiences that one can truly try to seize what they want when they want it. Had she met Jack later on in her life, their story could have been completely different. These are only two of several examples in which the ages and journeys of the characters determine their decisions about self and love.
This theme is integral to the romance genre’s need for a relatable character. Readers can empathize with the messy process of getting older and navigating one’s dreams within the harsh realities of life. This relatability may make it easier for us to accept the almost absurd plausibility of love at first sight as well as the theme of true love.
The Different Types of Love
One Day in December is a genuine romance novel that explores love in different layers. The first love is the dreamy, unconditional, true love Silver paints as the ultimate goal—referred to throughout the novel as the “one hundred percent.” Silver draws a distinction between love that is fine and love that is ideal. The lightning bolt of true love sparks the plot from the first chapter, when Laurie and Jack see each other at a bus stop. True love keeps them interested in one another’s lives, even when they are both unavailable.
True love is the end goal of this book, and indeed the circular narrative structure of calendar dates, New Year’s resolutions, and holidays emphasizes the consistency of true love. Careers and friendships change, families can be thwarted by death, but true love prevails. True love is the heart and soul of this novel and works in parallel with the coming-of-age theme. Jack and Laurie experience true love for one another, but they must grow and test their individual lives before that true love can bring them together in a happy ending. The denial of true love is, in this novel, a structural plot tactic designed to emphasize the severity of true love.
The second type of love is the love that motivates friendships. Sarah and Laurie are bound by experiences that have created a sisterhood between them, and it is because of this love that Laurie denies herself the satisfaction of pursuing Jack’s affection. When Sarah and Laurie’s friendship falls apart with the revelation of Laurie’s secret, the loss of Sarah is more emotionally detrimental to Laurie than the absence of Jack in her life. Without Sarah, Laurie becomes more withdrawn and isolated. Laurie also develops a deep friendship with Jack in lieu of the romantic relationship she actually wants. Even though their friendship is undergirded by their secret true love for one another, the love behind their friendship is indeed integral to their happy future together. With the building blocks of friendship, Laurie and Jack can get to know each other intimately before they are both emotionally vulnerable enough to be together.
The third type of love explored in this book is the “70 percent love.” Sarah, Jack, and Laurie all go through the experience of falling in love with a person who is great for them but not their one hundred percent. This is an important experience for the characters, as it also invites the reader to question the nature of true love. Jack wonders if it’s possible to start at 70 percent and grow to 100, while Laurie convinces herself that it’s impossible and unrealistic to hope for 100%. Silver’s ending suggests that she disagrees with both Jack’s and Laurie’s ideas, and she allows the reader to compare the 70% relationships within the book to the 100% relationships between Sarah and Luke and, eventually, Laurie and Jack.
The Power of Fate
Fate is a conceptual theme that traces the story arch in this novel. Fate is a common trope in the romance novel genre, a theme meant to inspire the belief that the heroine is destined to be with the man she loves, despite all obstacles. The very notion of the "happily ever after" relies on the idea that two people can be happy forever because they're with one another, negating all the other troubles and problems that life might bring.
Fate allows authors like Josie Silver to play with real world expectations and experience. That first moment of fate, when Laurie locks eyes with Jack at the bus stop, propels the plot of the story. Laurie could have looked over her shoulder instead of out the window; she could have been reading a book or chatting with the person next to her. Jack is reading a book while waiting for the bus, and he, too, could have stayed engaged in his book instead of looking around. The fleeting moment changed the trajectory of their lives forever, and it is so random and powerful that Silver suggests it must be fate. The next moment that drives the plot and is much too random not to be fate is the fact that of all the millions of people in London, Sarah ends up with the very same man whom Laurie happened to see at the bus stop. The likelihood of this event is slim to none, but that's exactly what gives their relationship its power and its charm. With such a coincidence, Silver suggests that Laurie and Jack are surely destined to be together.
Laurie and Jack have a love that transcends the tribulations life puts them through. They can't seem to quit each other, even when their feelings for one another are a detriment to their lives. Even when the dust settles from their previous failed relationships, Laurie and Jack think of each other instead of trying to find someone else. Jack and Laurie each have a hole in their lives that Silver suggests can only be filled by the other person, therefore allowing for the idea that fate must eventually bring Laurie and Jack together. Laurie and Jack try very hard at many different times during the novel to get over one another, but their years-long desire for each other implies that there is no other ending than for them to find one another. Silver doesn't simply let fate play its role; she ensures that both Laurie and Jack grow as individuals and endure trials that make them stronger people. By the end, when fate brings them together, they are better for one another than that day at the bus stop.
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