Lids Character Analysis in A Complicated Kindness

Nomi’s closest friend, a former classmate who is now hospitalized for a mysterious chronic illness. Lids is mild-mannered, obedient, and devoutly religious. In other words, she’s everything Nomi isn’t, but the two girls respect their differences and get along well. Lids demonstrates the positive aspects of strong religious faith and forms a stark contrast to religious characters like The Mouth, who feel entitled to impose their beliefs on others. At the end of the novel, Lids is moved to a mental facility to receive shock treatment, without getting to say goodbye to Nomi.

Lids Character Timeline in A Complicated Kindness

The timeline below shows where the character Lids appears in A Complicated Kindness. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Today Nomi has visited the hospital to see her friend Lids, who has a mysterious chronic illness. Lids asks about the outside world and Nomi tells... (full context)

Nomi offers to come her hair or moisturize her face, but Lids said it would hurt too much. A mean nurse comes in and says disapprovingly that... (full context)

After leaving Mrs. Peters, Nomi visits Lids in the hospital. She carefully removes a pile of homework that the mean nurse has... (full context)

After leaving the doctor’s office, Nomi goes to see Lids in the hospital. The mean nurse tells her that visiting hours have ended, but she... (full context)

Nomi offers to wash Lids’s hair; at first Lids declines, as she finds this process very painful. However, Nomi comes... (full context)

Nomi misses Lids, so she walks to the hospital to visit. However, Lids’s parents are in the room... (full context)

Before driving to the dump, Nomi has gone to the hospital to see Lids. But Lids’s normal room is empty, and the orderly tells her that she’s been moved... (full context)