None of This Is True: A Novel

In these chapters, Jewell introduces the ongoing theme of Discerning Good Versus Evil in an Ambiguous World, for her tantalizing hints at Josie’s dark family dynamics intensify the mystery of the narrative considerably and imply that Josie’s story of her life is subject to suspicion. It is important to note that the author’s narrative style employs a strategic lack of information to create this tension, for in the midst of the few key details that she divulges about Erin’s reclusive and enigmatic presence within the Fair household, Jewell relies much more strongly on a deliberate narrative silence to pique her readers’ interest and create a sinister mystique around the developing story. Combined with the information from the school manager about Erin’s problematic and conspicuously absent older sister, Roxy, the author clearly casts Josie in a role that is less than wholesome. Likewise, although the school manager’s suspicion that Erin might be on the autism spectrum implies that Erin might also have sensory sensitivities that cause her to prefer the texture of baby food, this detail does not adequately explain why Erin never leaves her room, or why Josie is so reluctant to enter.

Although Josie is emerging as an unreliable narrator within the story, Jewell also makes it clear that her desire for change is genuine, for the erratic nature of her behavior supports the idea that she is going through a transformative journey, even if the true nature of that journey still remains to be seen. When Alix interviews Pat for the first time, Jewell uses this scene to further reinforce the theme of Discerning Good Versus Evil in an Ambiguous World. For example, Alix’s first impression of Pat’s “glamorous” appearance and “expansive hand gestures” (75) and manner is a positive one, especially when juxtaposed with Josie’s stiff and awkward effect, and Alix observes that Pat “sees herself as a woman worthy of attention and respect” (75). However, although Alix initially allows herself to be swayed by Pat’s performance, she realizes by the end of the interview that “Pat is actually a raging narcissist” (79), and this dramatic shift in perspective allows both Alix and the reader to recontextualize both Pat and Josie’s behavior patterns in a much less flattering light. Whereas Pat’s impeccable appearance might charitably be ascribed to her family status, the revelation of her narcissistic tendencies emphasizes that just as she is obsessed with maintaining the illusion of a perfect public image, her daughter has also been conditioned to seek approval for the portrayal of perfection and is therefore driven to attain a sense of perfection for herself. By extension, anything that Josie herself perceives to be less than perfect must be expunged from her public persona. Thus, the undercurrents of this scene serve to emphasize that Josie’s portrayal of reality is just as false as the image of perfection and innocence that her mother strives to project. In a world in which everything depends upon perspective, readers are reminded not to judge the characters based solely upon their appearances.

To further emphasize Josie’s fixation upon personal transformation, Chapter 14 shows her putting her lucky denim jacket aside for the first time in favor of “a floaty black shirt,” and exchanging her usual earrings for a fancier pair. The changes that Josie is feeling are beginning to manifest in her appearance, as she no longer feels that denim represents her personality well. In this scene, Josie is “blurring in her mind’s eye into a human puddle” (102), as her shifting sense of self begins to separate from the ways in which she has always defined herself. Instead, with the black top, sunglasses, and earrings, she is adopting a version of Alix’s dress in a misguided search for a new identity. Likewise, Alix herself also undergoes a shift in these chapters, as her initial interviews spur her into a more active investigation of the unexplained aspects of Josie’s life. Thus far, she has only asked casual questions of people like Mandy, the school manager, and even her interviews of more significant figures like Pat were conducted with the intent to merely gain supplemental information. Now, however, as she is confronted with multiple indications that Josie may not be entirely forthcoming about the truths behind her own life story, Alix recognizes the need to seek out more impartial sources of information about Josie and her family. Although her initial online searches turn up no new leads, the final scenes of this section emphasize Alix’s recognition that there is more to the story than what Josie is choosing to tell her. Yet even within the layers of suspicion with which the author has cloaked Josie, Jewell also forestalls the temptation to assign blame and labels by once again invoking the difficulty of Discerning Good Versus Evil in an Ambiguous World. This reminder occurs when Jewell recounts Josie’s time with Walter on her 16th birthday, forcing the realization that no matter how duplicitous and manipulative Josie may turn out to be, her childhood and subsequent life were irrevocably twisted by her too-young relationship with an older man. Josie’s realization that she “handed [her] life over to Walter when [she] was a child and never gave [her]self the chance to find out who [she] really was” (105) remains true, and while many of her actions are motivated by the need to manipulate, Josie’s search for her own identity is nonetheless real.