Absolutely Almost

A number of standalone chapters are dedicated entirely to math club and the jokes with which Mr. Clifton opens every session. Upon the club’s introduction in the chapter “math club,” the concept is met with resistance by Albie; however, within a single session, he begins to enjoy the sessions.

Albie feels accepted and seen at math club; after Calista, Mr. Clifton is the second adult in his life to offer this safety. Even when Albie performs badly on a quiz, Mr. Clifton refuses to let him quit, encouraging him to ignore the grade and keep trying. Thus, the club is a space where Albie’s worth is not tied to performance. When Albie later shares his mathematical discovery through stacking cups, Mr. Clifton applauds this, telling Albie that he has done “accidental math.” Through these instances, math club calls to the themes of different conceptions of intelligence and worth, and the importance of multiple approaches to learning.

Furthermore, the standalone chapters in which the jokes feature also record Albie’s response to the jokes. Albie’s responses reflect his psychological state in the moment, further indicating the health of his self-esteem; Albie initially almost always laughs at the jokes, but after becoming a “nobody” in class, he does not find the jokes funny. Toward the end of the book, as he rebuilds his relationships and steadily progresses in school, he does exceptionally well in math club, even earning a gold star!

Gummy bears are the first ever point of conversation between Albie and Betsy, as he remarks on her gummy bears in the chapter “lunch.” Later, when Albie defends Betsy against Darren, she gives Albie a red gummy briar, inaugurating their friendship. Gummy bears become a motif for the theme of friendship, and they track the highs and lows in Albie and Betsy’s friendship in particular.

For instance, their friendship begins with one gummy bear, but Betsy gives Albie three when he specifically recounts to her the number of yellow spots on Darren’s bug; this special act of friendship warrants extra gummy bears. Albie specifically notes how, on the day he joins Darren for lunch and leaves Betsy by herself, this marks the school year’s first lunch that he has no gummy bears; this absence of gummy bears persists for a while, paralleling the break in Albie and Betsy’s friendship. Subsequently, their reconciliation is marked by a bagful of gummy bears, presented to Albie by Betsy when he takes the blame for her wrecking Darren’s things. It is also the image of a gummy bear that Betsy uses to cheer Albie up about the B on his spelling test, an incident that showcases the strength and supportive nature of their friendship.

Calista makes the cardboard TV frame for Albie to use as a playful substitute for actual TV. The frame makes a couple of appearances in the book and largely functions as a symbol for the importance of choosing different perspectives—the importance of metaphorically changing the channel.

Calista is the first person in Albie’s life to see him as “smart,” so it is fitting that she is the one to make the frame. She introduces Albie to a different perspective about himself. He, in turn, having tired of being seen through a single lens his whole life—one that constantly sees him come up short, making him an always “almost”—welcomes the ability to “change the channel” whenever he feels like it.

The frame reappears on the day after Albie’s birthday. After the fiasco with the second model airplane, Albie pulls out the TV frame and, through it, watches Dad running on the treadmill. Here, Albie feels frustrated that he can’t “change the channel,” and this symbolizes that he feels stuck in how he sees and feels about his relationship with Dad. (This later changes, as explored earlier through the motif of the model airplane.)