A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

Holly Jackson

Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2019

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Download PDF

Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 1, Chapters 1-5

Part 1, Chapters 6-11

Part 2, Chapters 12-16

Part 2, Chapters 17-22

Part 2, Chapters 23-28

Part 3, Chapters 29-33

Part 3, Chapters 34-38

Part 3, Chapters 39-43

Part 3, Chapters 44-48

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Book Club Questions

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

The Photographic Evidence Proving Sal’s Innocence

The photographic evidence that proves Sal’s innocence is a key symbol that represents freedom from false accusations for Sal and his family but also the internal conflict Pip faces about whether to bring the evidence to the police. When confronted with the reality of Sal’s innocence through the photograph that proves Sal was still at Max Hastings’s house when he said he was, Pip is forced to make a decision: bring the evidence to the police or protect Naomi from legal trouble due to her involvement in the hit-and-run. Torn between the truth of Sal’s innocence and her desire to protect Naomi for Cara’s sake, Pip must question what the right and wrong choices are, echoing the struggle she faces with her identity throughout the course of her investigation.

Pip’s College Application Essay

Pip struggles throughout much of the narrative to write her college application personal essay, and the essay comes to represent a search for her identity. When faced with the task of writing about who she really is, Pip admits she does not really know and is still searching for herself. This essay becomes a source of stress for Pip as the deadline for the application submission gets closer and closer. She is finally able to express herself through her essay, but even then, she must confess she does not know who she is without a task to solve, and she relates this identity search back to her capstone project. Although Pip’s search is ongoing—even as she attempts to confront herself through the essay—several characteristics are revealed by her essay passage, such as her dogged devotion and righteous desire to discover the truth.

The Murder Board

The murder board Pip and Ravi create stands as the culmination of all of Pip’s investigative research and efforts. It is a visual representation of all the key players in the case and their connections but also illustrates Pip’s serious intention to treat the case as an official investigation. Much like a police officer or private investigator attempting to solve a case, Pip undertakes the task of solving the crime using the murder board, which—in the end—is what allows her to see the connections that lead her to the truth.