Everything, Everything: 93. Life is Short; This Life Summary & Analysis

Maddy’s spoiler review of The Little Prince is that love is worth everything. She lands in New York. She only told Olly that there’s a gift waiting for him at a used bookstore near his house and spent the flight imagining their kiss-filled reunion. Maddy gets out of the cab and enters the bookstore. It’s dim and smells old. She takes the 15 minutes before Olly is due to gawk at the books. When it’s almost time, Maddy’s stomach fills with butterflies and she hides. Olly appears a few minutes later. He is, for once, not wearing all black—his tee shirt is gray. Maddy begins to panic at seeing him so different, but she reasons that she’s not the same anymore either.

Olly pulls out his phone to check Maddy’s directions, which are that he’ll know the gift when he sees it in the S-U aisle. He finds Maddy’s book set in front of the others and stares at it. Maddy thinks that she knows now that there’s not just one moment that brought her here—there are many moments, and a person’s life can change in many different ways depending on their choices. There are many different versions of her life. In some she’s sick; in others she died in Hawaii; and in some, Maddy’s dad and brother are alive. In this version, however, Olly is in her life. As Olly picks up the book, Maddy walks toward him. Olly smiles.