Healer of the Water Monster

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2021

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Prologue-Chapter 6

Chapters 7-13

Chapters 14-20

Chapters 21-26

Chapter 27-Epilogue

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Chapters 21-26Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 21 Summary: “Naadiin Dóó Bi’ąą T’ááłá’í”

Nali’s sadness and anger toward Uncle Jet dull into resignation. Her empty eyes look like the “eyes of a toy doll” (217), a blank expression that reminds Nathan of his father after Nathan’s grandfather passed away. Nathan convinces his grandmother not to give up on his uncle by saying that he still believes they can help Jet and by asking her to try for Nathan’s sake. As they drive into Gallup, Nathan worries about Uncle Jet’s safety and about how he will recover his communication stone. Messages from his friends and family inform him that his mother and friends will be returning to Phoenix soon, and he texts his father to let him know that he misses him. Nali inquires at several different bars in Gallup, but no one has information on Uncle Jet’s whereabouts.

Wind carries Nathan to meet Darkness and Pond in the desert that night. Without his communication stone, Nathan cannot understand Wind or Pond, so Darkness translates for them. Nathan proposes a solution to their dilemma: He can learn the songs in Navajo. With repeated practice, Nathan feels more confident forming “the hard, short consonants and the long, lyric vowels” (221). The music practice comes to an end when Pond grows weak, and Nathan promises to learn the songs in time to save his ailing friend.

Chapter 22 Summary: “Naadiin Dóó Bi’ąą Naaki”

Three days after Nali and Nathan first searched Gallup for Uncle Jet, Nathan sees a man wearing Jet’s Marine jacket in the back of a police car. The man explains that he traded a bottle of alcohol for the jacket and that Uncle Jet was arrested for fighting soon afterward. A police officer helps them locate Uncle Jet at an adult detention center. Nathan and Nali have difficulty recognizing Jet in the crowded and dimly lit holding cell, but Nathan sees the “evil eyes” of the Ash Being lurking in Jet’s shadow (226). The fine to free Uncle Jet is $300. Nali tries to pawn her silver watch, which is all she has left after selling her rugs and jewelry to pay for the Enemy Way Ceremony. Nathan springs into action and sells his smartphone instead. Nali and Nathan bail Uncle Jet out, and the man’s uncommunicative behavior fills Nathan with an “uneasy feeling” that Uncle Jet will do something drastic and frightening (228).

Chapter 23 Summary: “Naadiin Dóó Bi’ąą Táá’”

Nathan’s feeling of dread lingers when they return to Nali’s home and Uncle Jet secludes himself. When Nathan brings Jet dinner, the smell of alcohol and the sense of hopelessness that pervade the hogan terrify the boy. Uncle Jet refuses the food and alarms Nathan by saying, “It’ll all be good. Very soon” (232). His uncle’s eyes and voice remind Nathan of the Ash Being. Knowing from experience how despair can overwhelm someone, the boy stays by Uncle Jet’s side when the man asks him to leave. Nathan asks Jet to eat so that he’ll be strong enough for the ceremony. Jet answers that there won’t be a ceremony and reveals that many ceremonies were held for Nathan’s grandfather to no avail. Nathan insists that Jet isn’t worthless and hugs him tight. Through tears, Jet hugs him back and admits that he needs help. Nathan helps Uncle Jet walk to Nali, and the two adults go inside the mobile home to talk.

The following morning, Uncle Jet, Nali, and Nathan go to the Gallup Indian Medical Center. Nathan briefly wonders if he should pretend that everything is all right the way that his father did during his parents’ divorce. He decides that adults do this in difficult situations out of a desire to protect him, but he concludes that facing the problem is best and tells Uncle Jet that he loves him. A doctor prescribes six days of constant observation in the center along with therapy and antidepressants.

At first, Nali insists that the Enemy Way Ceremony will cure Jet, but Nathan helps her understand that Jet must “walk both paths to wellness” and receive long-term medical treatment (237). Later that afternoon, Nathan’s father calls Nali for an update on Jet. Nathan releases some of the pain and emotions he has been carrying while talking to his father, who commends the bravery he showed by helping his uncle. Nathan’s father shocks him by saying that he’s coming to take him back home to Phoenix.

Chapter 24 Summary: “Naadiin Dóó Bi’ąą Dį́į́”

Nathan’s father arrives at Nali’s home and says that he wants to take Jet to Phoenix as well, asserting that his little brother will receive better care in the city. Nathan tells his grandmother and his father all about the deal he made to go to the Third World in exchange for the Holy Beings’ help with Uncle Jet’s ceremony. Nathan’s father doesn’t believe him because he thinks that Holy Beings are just “fairy tales” (243). To Nathan’s surprise and disappointment, Nali doesn’t believe him either. To convince the adults, Nathan sings the water monster lullaby in his head and freezes a bottle of water. He declares that he is going to stay whether or not his father gives him permission and expresses his wish that his father would believe in him “at least once” (245). Nali agrees to let Nathan have the bow guard again after he promises to stay committed to his education and earn a doctorate degree someday.

Now that Nathan has the communication stone back, he can speak with Wind and Pond again. Pond is surprised that Nathan was able to freeze water with the lullaby because such a feat is beyond most humans. The water monster resumes teaching Nathan the songs, but Pond’s health continues to deteriorate, and he uses the last of his medicine. Nathan worries that he may be too late to save his friend.

Chapter 25 Summary: “Naadiin Dóó Bi’ąą ’Ashdla’”

When the Enemy Way Ceremony is just five days away, Nali and Nathan go to the ceremonial site in the mountains. Nathan will already be in the Third World by the time the ceremony begins, and the idea of facing Mother Water Monster still frightens him. While the adults work on preparing a structure called a chaha’oh for the ceremony, Andrea and Nathan go to the forest to chop wood. A horned toad named Plant Healer approaches the children. Although Andrea can hear the lizard, she can barely see him. Andrea explains that she and Nathan can perceive Holy Beings and their assistants because the children believe in them. She knows about Nathan’s quest and calls him “healer of the water monster” (256). Nathan feels relieved that he has a friend he can talk to about the Holy Beings, and he plans to ask her to look after Pond when he goes home to Phoenix.

Chapter 26 Summary: “Naadiin Dóó Bi’ąą Hastą́ą́”

Pond’s condition continues to worsen. He groans in pain and loses scales as he practices the fourth and final song with Nathan. The boy now possesses the ability to move water with his mind by reciting the water monster songs. Wind and Darkness tell Nathan to prepare for his journey, which will begin in three nights. They also tell him that he will face four obstacles on his way to the Third World. However, they are unable to recall what the obstacles are because their memories fade when humans do not share the old stories aloud. They lament that people are more interested in “modern conveniences” than their history (259). The Holy Beings warn Nathan that time passes differently between the worlds, prompting the boy to realize that he might miss all of Uncle Jet’s week-long ceremony. Annoyed and dispirited, Nathan returns to Nali’s home. He discusses the upcoming journey with his spider friend, who has prepared a long safety line with her web.

The next morning at breakfast, Nathan is alarmed to see that Nali is once again wearing a blank expression. She argues that she should go to the Third World in Nathan’s place, but he reminds her that he is the one who made a promise to Pond and learned the necessary songs. Nali relents but says that she will always worry about him and can’t “simply sit down” and allow her grandson to face danger (263). Nali brings Nathan to Devin for a blessing. The medicine man tells Nathan that the boy is more blessed and important than he realizes. Devin encourages Nali to focus on Jet and to trust in the Holy Beings to protect Nathan.

Chapters 21-26 Analysis

After the grim ending of the previous section, Nathan becomes the hero that Uncle Jet needs through an outpouring of hope and compassion. In Chapter 21, Nathan sees how sometimes family members can cause one another a pain so great that it renders their relatives numb and empty. Nathan witnessed this emptiness when his father learned that Nathan’s grandfather died, and he sees it again when Nali believes that Uncle Jet is beyond her help. Nathan’s kindness and determination break through Nali’s resignation and restore her hope. Further demonstrating that family brings more than pain, Nathan’s relationship with his father continues to mend. In Chapter 21, his father sends him a message saying that he misses him, and Nathan lets him know that the feeling is mutual.

Nathan grows into his own kind of hero, and the way he solves his problems reflects his strengths and values. He cannot betray his conscience by snooping through Nali’s things and taking back the bow guard. Instead, he offers to learn the water monster songs in Navajo. This inventive solution demands a great deal of hard work, but it is true to his nature and has the added benefit of helping him grow closer to his culture. This also connects to the motif of communication because Nathan finds ways to learn and facilitate dialogue even without the communication stone to simplify things.

The protagonist also demonstrates heroic qualities in his response to the problems facing his family. He shows great selflessness when he sells his smartphone to pay Uncle Jet’s bail. Chapter 23 marks a turning point for Uncle Jet. When the man expresses suicidal ideation, Nathan valiantly stays by his side and counters the Ash Being’s cruel lies. This saves Uncle Jet’s life, and he at last acknowledges that he needs help. In previous chapters, Nathan tried to be a peacekeeper and a mediator between his uncle and his grandmother. The poignant moment when he helps Jet walk to Nali in Chapter 23 marks the culmination of these efforts.

When Nathan accompanies Uncle Jet and Nali to the medical center, the boy decides that it’s better to confront his problems rather than pretend and ignore them. This is different from the way Nathan’s father handles issues. Moreover, it differs greatly from how Nathan handled his problems at the start of the novel. In Chapter 1, he pretended that he wasn’t angry at his father and invented the science project as an excuse to stay with Nali instead of telling his father how he felt about Leandra. As a result, Chapter 23 marks an important moment of growth for Nathan as well as Uncle Jet. The quest to the Third World still lies ahead of the protagonist, and a long road to recovery stretches before Jet, but Nathan has already proved himself a hero by helping his uncle take those first vital steps to healing.

At the same time, Nathan is still a child, as his tears and shaky words during the phone call with his father indicates. He needs this moment of safety to let out all the pain and fear he feels about Uncle Jet, but his father misreads this as another reason to bring his son back to Phoenix. To avert the disaster this would spell for his quest, Nathan is honest, direct, and determined. He tells Nali and his father about his promise to journey to the Third World and then freezes water with the strength of his emotions in Chapter 24. This forthright dialogue connects to the motif of communication and demonstrates his commitment to confronting his problems.

However, while Nathan manages feats that would be impossible for most humans, he has some lingering doubts about his ability to save Pond. As Uncle Jet’s ceremony and Nathan’s journey to the Third World rapidly approach, Nathan finds comfort in the discovery that his recent acquaintance, Andrea, can also sense Holy Beings. This knowledge helps him feel less alone and less guilty about his eventual return to Phoenix. Andrea bestows on him the title “healer of the water monster” (256).

This description reinforces the boy’s heroism, but it carries a certain dramatic irony, as does Nathan’s idea that Andrea can look after Pond when he returns to Phoenix. Many clues point to the fact that Pond is unlikely to survive. Of course, the water monster’s fate doesn’t render Nathan’s journey meaningless. To complete this quest, Nathan will have to draw on the same reserves of hope, compassion, and intelligence that fuel his heroic actions in this section.