Rich in Love: Analysis of Major Characters
"Rich in Love" is a novel that revolves around Lucille Odom, a seventeen-year-old high school senior who narrates her story two years after her mother's sudden disappearance. As Lucille grapples with her mother's absence, she takes on the responsibility of keeping her family together while exploring new relationships and ultimately redefining her understanding of family. The narrative expresses Lucille's resilience and joy in the face of adversity, creating a life-affirming tone amid the challenges of a disintegrating family unit.
Key characters include Lucille's father, Warren Odom, a retired demolition expert who, despite his initial heartbreak, finds new happiness after accepting his wife's departure. Lucille's mother, Helen, characterized by her absent-mindedness, leaves a lasting impact on her family, and their eventual reunion signifies significant personal growth for both women. Lucille's sister, Rae, brings her own complexities to the family dynamics, especially with her new husband, Billy McQueen, whose unconventional approach to their relationship raises questions about love and commitment. Additionally, Lucille's friendships, particularly with Wayne Frobiness and Rhody Poole, further enrich the narrative, highlighting themes of love, loss, and the search for belonging.
Rich in Love: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Josephine Humphreys
First published: 1987
Genre: Novel
Locale: Mount Pleasant and Charleston, South Carolina
Plot: Domestic realism
Time: The mid-1980's
Lucille Odom, the protagonist and narrator. “Lulu” to her mother and sister, she is a seventeen-year-old high school senior during the events of the novel but is narrating from two years later. When her mother, Helen, abruptly disappears, Lucille tries to keep the family together. As it becomes clear that her mother will not be returning, Lucille tries out some new relationships and eventually learns to redefine “family.” Her telling of the story emphasizes the joy she takes in her world rather than the sadness of a disintegrating family. Indeed, Lucille's coming together, opposed to her family's coming apart, makes the novel life-affirming.
Warren Odom, Lucille's father, called “Pop.” A sixty-year-old retired demolition expert, his distinguishing characteristic is his innocence, according to Lucille, but Lucille no doubt sees herself reflected in him. Lucille thinks he will be heartbroken by Helen's departure, but in fact his heart is remarkably resilient. Troubled by memories of poverty during the Depression, he uses his memories to help him move forward. Gradually, he comes to accept his wife's disappearance and begins a relationship with another woman in which he finds a new happiness. In the end, all that holds him to Helen is memory.
Helen Odom, Lucille's mother. Forty-nine years old, she and Warren have been married for twenty-seven years. She leaves the family suddenly and disappears. Lucille eventually reunites with her mother, but by then major changes have taken place in both their lives. According to Lucille, Helen's distinguishing characteristic is absent-mindedness, which suggests her need to make herself present outside marriage.
Rae Odom McQueen, Lucille's sister. Twenty-five years old, she is beautiful, with brown eyes and blonde hair. When she was growing up in South Carolina, she was a singer with a black band. Later, she graduated from Sweet Briar and worked in Washington, D.C., for a senator. When Lucille calls her about Helen's disappearance, Rae leaves Washington and surprises Lucille by bringing home a new husband.
Billy McQueen, Rae's husband. An Illnois Yankee among Southerners, he was working on a Ph.D. in history at George Washington University before he and Rae headed south. He made Rae pregnant by using deliberately punctured condoms; in his view, this was the only way he had a hope of getting her to marry him. Living with the Odoms, he gets a job teaching history and coaching soccer at Wando High School. He is deeply in love with Rae, who appears to be bored with him, perhaps because, as she says, he wants only a normal life.
Wayne Frobiness, Lucille's friend. Close to Lucille's own age and the child of divorced parents, he works as a counselor at a crisis center. He desires Lucille.
Rhody Poole, a black friend of Rae. Rhody has a daughter, Evelyn, who was born when Rhody was fourteen. Rhody provides an ironic link between Lucille and Helen.
Vera Oxendine, Warren Odom's hair stylist. She and Warren begin dating after Helen leaves. Lucille sees Vera as the exact opposite of Helen, which implies that Warren is changing.