All the Bright Places: 16. Finch: Day 15 (I am still awake) Summary & Analysis

Finch shows up at Violet’s house early and introduces himself to her parents. They invite him for breakfast and tell him about Violet before the accident. When Violet comes downstairs, they’ve just told Finch about how Violet and Eleanor once chased the band Boy Parade across three states for an interview. Violet looks mortified.

Violet and Finch go outside, and Violet tells Finch where they’re going. As she goes to get her bike, Finch says he didn’t bring his—and he promises to drive slowly and stop if she wants to. He points out that they’ve seen all they can bike to and asks her to at least sit in the car. Violet snaps that Finch is selfish and can’t make people do things, but Finch says that he just got a good picture from Violet’s parents of how she used to be. No one, he says, is willing to push her and upset her, but she needs a shove. Angry, Violet pushes past Finch and climbs into the passenger seat of Little Bastard. 

Violet notices the blanket and pillow in the backseat, but Finch promises he’s not trying to seduce her. From the lawn, Finch tells her to put on her seatbelt and close the door. Then, he walks around and leans in the driver’s side door. Violet sighs, “okay.” Finch drives slowly and asks Violet if she’s okay at each block. When they get onto the main drag, Finch speeds up a little—but he’s still driving slowly enough to anger other drivers. To keep himself from trying to race them, he talks about how, as a kid, he’d run in circles until he wore a ring into the carpet.

Finch is feeling fantastic—he got Violet into the car, and Finch’s dad is out of town for business. He asks her about the accident. Surprisingly, she says that Eleanor was upset but wouldn’t let Violet drive. Violet had suggested the A Street Bridge, and she remembers Eleanor screaming and flying through the air—and then she woke up in the hospital. Finch asks Violet about Eleanor, and she says that Eleanor was funny, sweet, and stubborn. She was her best friend. Finch has never had a best friend, and he asks what it’s like. Violet says it means you can be yourself, and fights aren’t so scary. She apologizes about Roamer. Finch says that “sorry wastes time.” It’s essential to live life like you’ll never have to be sorry.

Finch and Violet pull in at the Bookmobile Park, a stretch of flat land with parked trailers. Violet explains that she and her family used to go on bookstore hunts and go looking for copies of specific books. As soon as the car stops, Violet heads for the first bookmobile. There, a woman introduces herself to Finch and explains the history of the bookmobiles (they used to tour the state until the 1980s, when she and her husband bought and parked them). The woman leads Finch through the trailers and Violet finds an armful of books she’d like to buy.

Finch gives the woman cash for the books, and while she goes to get change, Finch and Violet peruse the other trailers and choose a few more books. When the woman gets back, she insists that Finch keep the change, so he hides a $20 bill in a trailer. Then, Finch and Violet head back toward the car. Violet says they’re done with their project now, but Finch says they need to get Violet out of her safe zone. Violet walks ahead and ignores Finch, but this doesn’t bother him. Most people ignore him. He takes off running and pictures himself dead. Violet passes him and wins their race to the car. Finch gives her the notebook and says that they’re going to one more place today.