Annotate With Sara

SPOILERS

In the novel Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke, mirrors come up 15 times. Natalie Heller Mills, a tradwife influencer, can’t help but mention them in her story. She recalls a scene in front of her car’s rear view mirror and several scenes spent gazing into various household mirrors. Her eerie reference to the disclaimer printed on car side mirrors–Objects are closer than they appear–makes for a particularly chilling moment in Ch 40.

Added to all these examples is the recurring pattern of Natalie having some of her most important interactions with her daughter Clementine in front of mirrors. Speaking to each other via their reflections is hugely symbolic of the distance and distortion present in their bond.

One other thing to consider with this motif is that mirrors are a big trope in both horror and thriller fiction. Yesteryear, famously, is set to be adapted as a tradwife horror film by Anne Hathaway (who is mentioned in the novel’s Acknowledgements section). The mirrors in the scenes of Yesteryear will translate easily to the big screen if Anne Hathaway and her team chooses to include them. Whether it’s the movie of the novel, mirrors are a perfect object to focus on in a story about an influencer who creates not only her self-image but elaborate illusions to protect it.

Mirrors in Horror: Mirrors are a staple trope in horror fiction, an overused one even if you’re asking production software company StudioBinder. On their YouTube channel, they have a comprehensive overview of the use of mirrors in popular horror movies and TV shows. It’s worth a watch if you’re interested in this imagery.

Annotation List for Mirrors in Yesteryear

You will need 16 tabs to annotate all the mirror moments in Yesteryear. I recommend choosing a highlighter that coordinates with your tab color to mark the passages with mirrors in them. The list is below.

Want to support my work? You can purchase a PDF version of this annotating guide as a 10-page digital download from my Etsy shop.

1. TAB Part One: The Past, p 13 when NATALIE IS SPEAKING WITH CLEMENTINE IN THE MIRROR.
2. TAB Part One: The Past, p 24 when NATALIE SPEAKING WITH CLEMENTINE IN THE REAR VIEW MIRROR
3. TAB Chapter 3, p 47 as NATALIE REALIZES THERE ARE NO MIRRORS AT YESTERYEAR
4. TAB Chapter 13, p 104 when NATALIE ACCEPTS THERE ARE NO MIRRORS AT YESTERYEAR
5. TAB Chapter 20, p 145 when NATALIE RECEIVES AMELIA’S COMMUNIQUÉ VIA A MIRROR
6. TAB Chapter 20, p 147 when NATALIE DOESN’T TAKE AMELIA’S PILL WHILE PRETENDING WOMEN WATCH HER IN THE MIRROR
7. TAB Chapter 20, p 148 when NATALIE CONJURE’S REENA IN THE MIRROR
8. TAB Chapter 31, p 22 when TWO CHARACTERS ARE SEEING FEAR REFLECTED
9. 2 TABS Chapter 32, p 225 & 230 when MIRRORS AND MIRRORING COME UP TWICE DURING NATALIE’S SOCIAL MEDIA TRAINING:
10. TAB Chapter 32, p 231 when NATALIE HAS A THIRD CONVERSATION WITH CLEMENTINE IN FRONT OF A MIRROR, TEACHING HER TO FAKE SMILE
11. TAB Chapter 38, p 269 when NATALIE SOOTHES HERSELF IN FRONT OF A MIRROR
12. TAB Chapter 40, p 276 for OPTICAL ILLUSIONS AND MIRRORS
13. TAB Chapter 45, p 302 when MARY UNKNOWINGLY CRUSHES ON HER OWN BROTHER
14. TAB Part Three: The Future, p 370 when NATALIE REALIZES HER OWN PSYCHOLOGICAL FRACTURING AND USES A MIRROR METAPHOR
15. TAB Part Three: The Future, p 371 when MARY REALIZES THE NEIGHBORS ARE HER BROTHERS