Obituary and Vodka

Kindergarten teacher Mickey discovers her estranged father's passing through an obituary that omits her name. Unfazed, she buries the news under her daily routine, cleaning her classroom and caring for a neglected student, Ian. The day's end brings a clandestine swig of vodka in the school bathroom, a ritual that soothes her pain and sharpens her focus. When a lawyer calls, Mickey is forced to confront her past: her father has left her something in his will. The call stirs old wounds of abandonment and poverty, but Mickey's defenses remain high. She agrees to meet the lawyer, setting in motion a chain of events that will force her to reckon with her family, her addiction, and her own capacity for care.

The Will's Conditions

Mickey meets Tom Samson, her father's lawyer, and learns she's been left a fortune—on the condition she completes seven therapy sessions. The sum is staggering, but the requirement feels like a final insult from a man who abandoned her. Mickey's resentment is palpable, yet the lure of financial security is undeniable. Meanwhile, she navigates the complexities of her student Ian's troubled home life, making choices that blur professional boundaries. The will's stipulation becomes a catalyst, pushing Mickey toward a reluctant engagement with her own trauma, and setting her on a collision course with her half-sister, Arlo, who is about to face her own reckoning.

Funeral Fiasco

At her father's funeral, Arlo, his favored daughter, is overwhelmed by the chaos of family, unresolved resentments, and the spectacle of her father's two wives—her mother and Mickey's mother—clashing over his ashes. Arlo's skills as a psychologist are put to the test as she defuses the confrontation, but beneath her composure lies deep insecurity and guilt. The funeral is a stage for old wounds and new humiliations, and Arlo's sense of self is shaken when she learns, through the lawyer, that her father's will may not be as she expected. The event leaves her questioning her place in the family and her own professional competence.

Sisters Unaware

Mickey and Arlo move through their days unaware of their shared blood, each haunted by the same absent father. Mickey's struggles with addiction and job insecurity mirror Arlo's professional doubts and personal loneliness. Both women are drawn to children—Mickey as a teacher, Arlo as a therapist—seeking redemption through care. Their paths begin to converge as Mickey starts therapy at the clinic where Arlo works, neither realizing the other's true identity. The sessions are fraught with tension, as Mickey resists vulnerability and Arlo projects her own issues onto her client, setting the stage for a dramatic revelation.

Therapy for Millions

Mickey's therapy sessions with Arlo are a dance of avoidance and confrontation. Mickey is defensive, minimizing her drinking and her pain, while Arlo pushes for insight, all the while struggling with her own grief and guilt over a client's suicide. The sessions force both women to confront uncomfortable truths: Mickey's drinking is more serious than she admits, and Arlo's need for control masks her own fragility. The inheritance looms over them, a prize and a burden, as Mickey tries to fast-track her sessions and Arlo becomes increasingly invested in her client's progress—for reasons she can't fully articulate.

Classroom Collapse

After taking Ian home herself, Mickey is placed on unpaid leave for violating school policy. The loss of her classroom—her sanctuary and sense of purpose—sends her into a tailspin. She clings to her routines and her bottle, but the cracks are widening. The substitute teacher's incompetence is a personal affront, and Mickey's sense of identity as a caregiver is threatened. The stress pushes her further into isolation and self-doubt, even as she tries to maintain a facade of control. The consequences of her choices ripple outward, affecting Ian, his family, and her own fragile support system.

Inheritance and Exclusion

Arlo's expectations of a financial legacy are shattered when she learns her father has left her nothing. The betrayal is profound, undermining her sense of worth and her narrative of being the "good daughter." The revelation comes on the heels of professional setbacks and personal failures, compounding her grief. Arlo's attempts to understand her father's motives lead her to investigate Mickey, the mysterious beneficiary, and to question the ethics of her own actions. The loss of the inheritance becomes a symbol of all the ways she has been overlooked and undervalued, both as a daughter and as a person.

Unraveling at the Edges

Mickey's drinking escalates as her life becomes increasingly unmanageable. She alienates friends, sabotages relationships, and makes reckless decisions—culminating in a disastrous birthday party where a drunken accident injures Ian. The incident is a wake-up call, but also a source of deep shame. Mickey's attempts to make amends are clumsy and often self-serving, and her efforts to secure the inheritance lead her into morally dubious territory, including theft and blackmail. The consequences of her actions force her to confront the reality of her addiction and the damage she has caused.

Birthday Breakdown

Mickey's birthday party, intended as a step toward connection and normalcy, devolves into chaos. Drunk and desperate, she accidentally injures Ian with a broken decanter, triggering a crisis that exposes the depth of her dysfunction. The fallout is immediate: relationships are strained, her reputation is further damaged, and her sense of self-worth plummets. The event becomes a turning point, forcing Mickey to acknowledge the harm she has caused and the need for real change. The party's aftermath is a crucible for both Mickey and Arlo, whose own secrets are on the verge of exposure.

Catastrophe and Consequence

Facing blackmail from Ian's mother and mounting financial pressure, Mickey pawns her neighbor's beloved cat for cash, a betrayal that epitomizes her moral decline. The act is both a practical solution and a symbolic low point, severing one of her last meaningful connections. Meanwhile, Arlo's surveillance of Mickey and her own ethical lapses as a therapist come to a head. Both women are forced to reckon with the consequences of their actions, the limits of their self-justifications, and the possibility of forgiveness. The chapter is a study in the ways people hurt each other—and themselves—when pushed to the brink.

Pawnshop and Confession

The fallout from Mickey's theft and Arlo's spying leads to painful confrontations and reluctant confessions. Mickey's attempt to return the cat and make amends is met with a mixture of anger and grace. Arlo, meanwhile, faces the collapse of her professional identity and the realization that her own need for control has caused harm. Both women begin to take tentative steps toward accountability, seeking help and making gestures of repair. The chapter marks the beginning of a slow, uncertain recovery, as each woman starts to imagine a future beyond the wreckage of her past.

Cemetery Reckonings

At their father's headstone unveiling, Mickey and Arlo's secrets are laid bare before family and strangers alike. Arlo's public breakdown and Mickey's raw, drunken speech force both women to confront the truth of their father's legacy and their own complicity in perpetuating cycles of pain. The event is cathartic and humiliating, a necessary rupture that clears the way for honesty and, perhaps, healing. The sisters' confrontation is both an ending and a beginning, as they finally see each other clearly and begin to understand the depth of their shared wounds.

Sober Beginnings

In the aftermath of the cemetery debacle, Mickey attends her first AA meeting, beginning the long, uncertain process of sobriety. The experience is awkward and humbling, but also a source of unexpected comfort. Mickey's decision to take medical leave from teaching and enter treatment is a radical act of self-care, one that requires her to relinquish control and accept help. Arlo, too, begins to dismantle her old life, quitting her job and seeking therapy for herself. Both women are stripped of their old identities, forced to rebuild from the ground up.

Amends and Departures

As Mickey works through the steps of recovery, she begins to make amends to those she has hurt—her mother, her neighbor, Ian, and even herself. The process is messy and incomplete, marked by setbacks and awkwardness, but it is also transformative. Arlo, meanwhile, navigates her own process of repair, seeking forgiveness from her mother and attempting to build a new life outside the confines of her professional persona. The sisters' relationship, once defined by secrecy and resentment, becomes a site of tentative trust and mutual support.

New Boundaries

Mickey and Arlo establish new boundaries with the people in their lives, learning to ask for help and to accept the limits of their own power. Mickey's relationship with Chris and Ian evolves into something more honest and sustainable, while Arlo's connection with her mother is renewed on different terms. Both women grapple with the ongoing challenges of recovery and self-acceptance, recognizing that change is slow and often painful. The inheritance, once a source of conflict, becomes an opportunity for generosity and shared purpose.

Recovery and Reunion

In treatment, Mickey learns the value of small routines and the importance of community. Visiting day brings a reunion with Arlo, now a fellow traveler on the path of healing. The sisters share memories, regrets, and hopes for the future, acknowledging the complexity of their relationship and the possibility of forgiveness. The money is split, not as a reward or a consolation, but as a gesture of solidarity. Both women are changed—not cured, not redeemed, but moving forward with greater self-awareness and compassion.

Maybe, Maybe Not

The story ends on a note of ambiguity and possibility. Mickey and Arlo, no longer defined by their father's legacy or their own failures, face the future with cautious optimism. Recovery is ongoing, relationships are fragile, and the past cannot be undone. But there is hope in the willingness to try, to reach out, to make amends, and to accept the messiness of being human. The final lesson is not one of triumph, but of endurance: life is maybe, and that is enough.

Characters

Mickey Morris (Michelle Kowalski)

Mickey is a thirty-something kindergarten teacher whose life is shaped by abandonment, addiction, and a fierce, if brittle, sense of responsibility. Her father's desertion left her with deep wounds and a tendency to self-medicate with alcohol, even as she excels at caring for children. Mickey's relationships are marked by ambivalence—she craves connection but fears disappointment, often pushing people away before they can hurt her. Her journey is one of painful self-recognition: forced by her father's will to confront her trauma, she spirals through shame, denial, and self-destruction before finally seeking help. Mickey's arc is defined by her struggle to accept love, make amends, and believe in the possibility of change, even as she doubts her own worth.

Arlo (Charlotte) Kowalski

Arlo is the "good" daughter, a psychologist whose professional competence masks profound insecurity and unresolved grief. Raised by her father and his second wife, Arlo is haunted by the need for approval and the fear of inadequacy. Her identity is bound up in being the caretaker—of her clients, her dying father, and her mother—leaving little room for her own needs. The revelation that she has been cut out of the will destabilizes her, exposing the fragility of her self-image. Arlo's relationship with Mickey, first as an unwitting therapist and later as a sister, forces her to confront her own ethical failings and the limits of her empathy. Her journey is one of humility, as she learns to relinquish control, seek help, and accept the messiness of love and loss.

Tom Samson

Tom is the executor of the will and a man wrestling with his own regrets—failed relationships, professional missteps, and a late-in-life search for meaning. His interactions with both Mickey and Arlo are marked by awkwardness, candor, and a surprising capacity for kindness. Tom's own journey through therapy and self-improvement mirrors the struggles of the women he serves, and his willingness to admit his faults makes him a rare source of nonjudgmental support. He becomes a bridge between the sisters, offering practical help and emotional honesty, even as he stumbles through his own midlife crises.

Deborah (Mickey's Mother)

Deborah is Mickey's mother, a woman hardened by years of disappointment and struggle. Her relationship with Mickey is fraught—marked by love, frustration, and the painful necessity of setting boundaries. Deborah's own journey is one of self-preservation: she learns to prioritize her own well-being, even at the cost of estrangement from her daughter. Her eventual willingness to forgive and reconnect is hard-won, a testament to her strength and her capacity for growth.

Evelyn (Ian's Mother)

Evelyn is a teenage mother whose life is a series of crises and escapes. She loves her son, Ian, but is often unable to provide the stability he needs, relying on her brother Chris and, at times, Mickey. Evelyn's actions—abandonment, blackmail, and eventual return—are driven by desperation and immaturity, but she is not without remorse. Her arc is one of slow, uneven progress toward responsibility, catalyzed by the interventions of those around her.

Chris (Ian's Uncle)

Chris is thrust into the role of guardian for his nephew Ian, a task for which he feels unprepared. His journey is one of reluctant growth, as he learns to care for a child and to open himself to vulnerability. Chris's relationship with Mickey is tentative and awkward, marked by mutual attraction and a shared sense of inadequacy. He is a stabilizing presence, offering Mickey both support and challenge, and his own struggles with family and self-doubt mirror hers.

Ian

Ian is a kindergartener whose needs and vulnerabilities drive much of the plot. His presence forces the adults around him—Mickey, Chris, Evelyn—to confront their own limitations and to make choices that reveal their character. Ian's resilience and capacity for forgiveness are a quiet rebuke to the adults' failings, and his well-being becomes a measure of their growth.

Daria

Daria is Mickey's neighbor, an artist with a blunt manner and a hidden warmth. She serves as a mirror and a foil for Mickey, challenging her self-deceptions and offering both tough love and practical support. Daria's own history of trauma and survival gives her insight into Mickey's struggles, and her eventual forgiveness is a model of grace.

Punam

Punam is Arlo's boss and mentor, a seasoned therapist who embodies both the strengths and the limitations of the profession. She pushes Arlo to confront her own issues, offering guidance and challenge in equal measure. Punam's presence is a reminder of the importance of boundaries, self-care, and humility in the work of healing.

Rybka (the Cat)

Rybka, Daria's rare and expensive cat, becomes a symbol of Mickey's moral decline and her capacity for harm. The theft and eventual return of Rybka mark a turning point in Mickey's journey, forcing her to confront the consequences of her actions and to seek forgiveness.

Plot Devices

Dual Narrative Structure

The novel employs a dual narrative, alternating between Mickey and Arlo's points of view. This structure allows the reader to see the parallel struggles of the two women, their mirrored wounds, and the ways their lives intersect before they themselves are aware. The device builds suspense and deepens empathy, as the reader is privy to secrets and motivations that the characters themselves do not fully understand.

Conditional Inheritance

The will's stipulation—that Mickey must complete therapy to receive her inheritance—serves as both a plot engine and a metaphor. It forces Mickey into a process of self-examination she would otherwise avoid, and it entangles her fate with Arlo's in ways neither could anticipate. The device raises questions about agency, coercion, and the possibility of change, and it drives much of the novel's conflict and resolution.

Foreshadowing and Irony

The narrative is rich with foreshadowing—Mickey's early denial of her drinking, Arlo's professional doubts, the repeated motif of abandonment and return. Irony abounds: the therapist in need of therapy, the teacher who cannot care for herself, the inheritance that brings more pain than relief. These devices create a sense of inevitability and tragedy, even as the characters struggle for agency.

Public and Private Reckonings

Key scenes—funeral, birthday party, headstone unveiling, school inquiry—serve as crucibles where private pain becomes public, and secrets are exposed. These moments of reckoning are both humiliating and liberating, forcing characters to confront the truth of their lives and to make choices about who they want to become.

Symbolism

The cat Rybka, the vodka bottle, the headstone, the childhood photograph—all serve as symbols of trust, betrayal, memory, and the possibility of redemption. These objects anchor the characters' emotional journeys and provide concrete markers of change.

Analysis

Favorite Daughter is a raw, darkly comic exploration of the long shadow cast by family trauma, addiction, and the search for self-worth. Through the intertwined stories of Mickey and Arlo—half-sisters bound by a father who failed them both—the novel interrogates the possibility of change: Can people truly heal, or are we doomed to repeat the patterns of our past? The conditional inheritance at the heart of the plot is both a cruel joke and a desperate hope, forcing Mickey into therapy and Arlo into self-examination. The book is unsparing in its depiction of addiction, shame, and the ways we hurt those we love, but it is also deeply compassionate, finding humor and grace in the messiest moments. The narrative resists easy redemption: recovery is slow, forgiveness is partial, and the future is uncertain. Yet, in the end, the novel insists on the value of trying—of making amends, setting boundaries, and reaching for connection, however imperfectly. The lesson is not that healing is guaranteed, but that it is possible, and that "maybe" is sometimes enough.

Last updated: October 29, 2025