Sarah’s Key: Chapter 38 Summary & Analysis

Julia recalls her phone call with her sister, in which Charla suggested Bertrand might be going through a midlife crisis.  After speaking to Charla, Julia then went to see her friend Isabelle, with whom she discussed the implications of separating from Bertrand. Julia feels incredibly conflicted. She will have to make a decision regarding an abortion within the next two weeks. Today, though, she is visiting Mamé. When she arrives at the nursing home, she recognizes Edouard’s car in the parking lot. After visiting with Mamé, Edouard asks to speak to Julia in his car. He says he’s learned from Zoë that Julia has continued her research—or, as Edouard calls it, her “prying into the past.” During the conversation that ensues, Edouard becomes distraught, repeatedly saying, “nobody knows.” Finally, he reveals that he was home in the rue de Saintonge apartment when Sarah returned.