47 pages • 1 hour read
Kennedy RyanThis Could Be Us
Fiction | 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 2, Chapters 25-35Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 2, Chapter 25 Summary: “Judah”
Judah and the boys call his mother, MawMaw, who is supportive about their autism, which Tremaine’s parents weren’t. When MawMaw says that Judah’s father, now retired, is getting recipes from Soledad, Judah admits that he likes Soledad, and his mother is happy for him.
Part 2, Chapter 26 Summary: “Soledad”
The “Boricua High Council” meets. Lola is moving to Austin to start a bookstore with her roommate and best friend, Olive, while Soledad gives Nayeli recommendations for her kid’s fever. They agree to meet to prepare their mother’s house for renting out. Soledad hosts a “Cook With Me” live broadcast.
Part 2, Chapter 27 Summary: “Soledad”
Soledad sits alone in Skyland Park early in the morning and converses with her heart. She has breakfast by herself and enjoys it. At home, she gets the mail and finds a check from Oneida Barnes, Edward’s mother. Soledad calls to thank her, but Oneida complains that Soledad abandoned Edward and then suggests that Lupe come for a visit. Soledad stands her ground; she won’t take the check if there are strings attached.
Part 2, Chapter 28 Summary: “Soledad”
Soledad gets everything ready for the Callahans’ Christmas party and then tells the guests about the menu. Judah is there. They walk outside, where she tells him that she wants him—and that she wants what she’s learning about herself. Judah reveals that he hasn’t been attracted to anyone else in the four years since his divorce. He shares that he has autistic tendencies and says that he will wait until she’s ready. They kiss, but Soledad is worried that they are moving too fast: “He draws me in, and if I’m not careful, he’ll draw me away from the work I know still needs to be done in my life before I tangle it with someone else’s” (232).
Part 2, Chapter 29 Summary: “Soledad”
Soledad makes pasteles for a traditional Nochebuena for the girls. Her sister Lola is visiting and meets Hendrix, who jokes about the disappointing men she’s been dating. Soledad confesses that she likes Judah and feels relieved to talk to her loved ones about it. She delivers pasteles to Cora’s home and meets her husband. Then, she takes a box to Judah’s house.
Part 2, Chapter 30 Summary: “Judah”
Judah invites Soledad inside, and they share a pastele. They talk about their lives and their families. He tells her that he’s made a “Me List” and offers to show her.
Part 2, Chapter 31 Summary: “Soledad”
Judah takes Soledad to his shed and shows her the classic Chevy truck he is restoring. He also has a motorcycle that he and his father will work on over Christmas—a model of the bike Prince rode in the movie Purple Rain. Soledad tells Judah what she likes about him, and he tells her what he likes about her. This feels empowering: “I forgot so many things I was capable of because [Edward] wanted me to believe I relied on him, when actually he relied on me much more” (258). They almost have sex in the truck bed, and Judah brings her to orgasm with his kisses and touch. Soledad relishes this pleasure.
Part 2, Chapter 32 Summary: “Soledad”
The girls ask to see Edward, and though she’s shocked and upset by the request, Soledad takes them to the prison. She’s still angry that Edward did not see her as an equal but treated her like unpaid labor. Edward talks with his daughters but then rushes them away. Soledad realizes that once again, she will be picking up the emotional pieces. As they leave, she sees Amber holding a baby who looks just like Edward. Amber says that she is struggling, but Soledad guesses that Edward has more money stashed away somewhere and is using it to support Amber.
Part 2, Chapter 33 Summary: “Judah”
Tremaine takes the boys over the weekend, so Judah invites Soledad over when she calls. She is upset about seeing Edward but feels like she should thank Amber: “I was so afraid of losing a life that wasn’t serving me well just because I wasn’t sure what else there was” (281). Soledad gives Judah a one-time offer to have sex. He takes her upstairs.
Part 2, Chapter 34 Summary: “Soledad”
Soledad is nervous at first since she has had sex with only Edward for 20 years. However, she and Judah have terrific sex, which feels like a new experience: “This wasn’t the first time for either of us, but something broke through inside me, and I think in him too” (293).
Part 2, Chapter 35 Summary: “Judah”
Judah is upset by the way Soledad matter-of-factly gets up to leave after their encounter when she gets a phone call from her daughter. He wants to be her partner and feels that “[s]ex with this woman has overturned [his] soul, spilling all the contents” (296). She sees that he is also reading bell hooks’s All About Love; his bookmark is the grocery list she dropped when they spoke together after Edward’s arrest. Before she goes out the door, she teases him about the huge box of condoms he has.
Part 2, Chapters 25-35 Analysis
The challenges that Judah has gone through in helping his parents learn about and address his sons’ autism address the theme of Parenting in Difficult Circumstances. His mother’s interest in her grandsons’ daily care and medical needs shows that she takes a loving and practical approach that focuses on providing the boys with what they need. Possibly, Judah’s parents were already exposed to some of what the boys require when raising Judah, who self-identifies as being somewhere on the autism spectrum. In contrast, Tremaine’s parents exemplify the potential harm of not knowing how to parent children with special needs—not understanding their diagnoses, these grandparents believe that conventional parenting strategies will “correct” whatever is “wrong” with the boys. Judah’s protectiveness of his sons demonstrates his skills as a parent. His closeness with his parents shows the generational foundation of emotional support in his life. His parents are comfortably interested in his love his as well: His mother welcomes his interest in Soledad, happy that Judah is seeking a romantic relationship, while his father’s interest in Soledad’s social media is lighthearted evidence of how her reach and influence are expanding.
Edward’s mother, Oneida, is a contrast and foil to Soledad on the parenting front. Her love is conditional; instead of supporting Soledad and her granddaughters unreservedly, she uses her money to pressure them to conform to her ideas. Soledad separates herself from the toxic imprint that Edward left on her life by confronting Oneida about her colorism in preferring Lupe (which Oneida denies) and calling her out about tearing Soledad down. Edward’s parenting is also shown in a poor light; not only is he in prison and thus no longer a daily presence in his daughters’ lives, but even when they visit, he ignores them and instead gets irritated at the mention of Judah. Edward is actually expecting a visit from Amber, who has given birth to his son—a betrayal of his first family in favor of his second family.
Soledad continues to use food to provide love and nurturance to her loved one, and to express her pride in her heritage, showing one way she is Navigating Multi-Ethnic Identities. When she makes pasteles—a traditional Puerto Rican Christmas plantains dish—for Judah and his boys, the novel explores how the culinary arts transmit culture. As with her hopes for her guests at the Harvest Festival, sharing a pastele with Judah is a chance to draw closer and break down barriers as they learn more about one another.
Judah’s appropriateness as a romantic partner for Soledad comes through in several ways. First, he is willing to learn from and be inspired by her. His “Me List,” which clearly comes from his interest in her social media posts, is evidence that he—like Soledad—is moving toward wholeness, recognizing and claiming what he enjoys, and no longer letting his whole life be work and sacrifices for his family. Second, Soledad’s she shed is mirrored in Judah’s car repair shed—both are places where these adults can pursue their own creative interests. Finally, Judah is reading the book she chose for her book club—bell hooks’s All About Love, a series of essays about how to give and receive love in beneficial and nurturing ways. This shows that he is deeply invested in the process of finding a deep and meaningful connection.
Ryan uses sex scenes to dramatize the difference between Soledad’s physical readiness for intimacy and her emotional hesitation to get involved with another person. Soledad is very attracted to Judah, which allows her to genuinely enjoy their make-out session in his truck and the one-time session of sex she offers him. However, it is clear that Judah is more invested in her at this moment than she is in him. These gestures suggest that he wants her love and to be in her life, but she’s not ready to commit in the way he would like because she hasn’t yet finished her journey of self-discovery. Sex becomes an important emotional consummation for both of them, but Soledad is pulled away by her daughters and the demands of her home, showing that she cannot yet prioritize Judah.
