Breath, Eyes, Memory

Breath, Eyes, Memory Summary | Book 1, Chapter 1 Summary

The story begins in the early 1980s in a small Haitian village called Croix-des-Rosets. The narrator, twelve-year-old Sophie, presses a daffodil into a Mother's Day card for her aunt Atie. Though Mother's Day is not until Sunday, Atie is upset that night, and Sophie decides to give her the card early. However, Atie refuses the card, saying mysteriously that this year the card belongs to Sophie's mother. This puzzles Sophie, because her mother left Haiti to live in Brooklyn, New York, when Sophie was very young, leaving Sophie behind with Atie. Sophie appreciates the fact that her mother has faithfully sent them money every month, allowing them a far better standard of living than they would have had otherwise. However, Sophie has never met her mother and only knows her from the picture on the night table beside her aunt's bed. Occasionally, Sophie has nightmares in which her mother chases her through a field of flowers to try to catch her and bring her back with her into the picture frame.

On the way home one-day, Tante (Aunt) Atie and Sophie pass the albino lottery agent coming up the road. Sophie mentions that he is thought to have the ability to turn into a snake with a flip of his tongue, and that he can see into the future just by looking into a person's eyes, unless she stops him by reciting a prayer in her head. When the lottery agent asks Atie how she is today, Atie responds, "Today, we are fine. We do not know about tomorrow." They pick a number to play and go on their way, passing some children—whose names Sophie recites, including Hope, Faith, and God-Given—playing in the park.

That night, Atie and Sophie attend the potluck dinner for which Atie has been preparing food all day. At the potluck, the men and women sit separately, and the teenage boys and girls hide in dark corners. Tante Atie and Sophie drink tea with a circle of women, where Madame Augustin asks about Martine, Sophie's mother. Madame Augustin then mentions that she saw Atie receive a very big package yesterday, and keeps asking questions about the package and New York until finally implying, loudly, that the package was a plane ticket. When Atie states that the plane ticket is not for her, the women conclude that the ticket must be for Sophie.

Outside their house, Sophie and Atie watch Madame and Monsieur Augustin go into their home across the street. Through the Augustins' bedroom window, Sophie and Atie watch the couple get ready for bed. As they laugh and tickle each other, tumbling into bed, a tear rolls down Atie's cheek, but she begs Sophie not to tell anyone about her crying. Inside, in the bedroom they share, Sophie accuses her aunt of lying to her. Atie says she did not lie; she kept a secret. Atie says she wishes that she could read the Bible to see what guidance God would offer in this situation.