Midnight At The Blackbird Cafe

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2019

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-6

Chapters 7-12

Chapters 13-18

Chapters 19-24

Chapters 25-29

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

Blackbirds

The blackbirds are an important part of the plot of this novel for several reasons. First, they are the spectacle that brings the birdwatchers into Wicklow, revitalizing the town in a few short weeks with the business these people conduct during their time in town. Second, the blackbirds are tree keepers that watch over the tunnel between two mulberry trees that the legend says connect the mortal world to the world of the dead. Finally, the blackbirds, according to Zee’s retelling of Celtic legend, are the spirits of deceased women of the Callow family who watch over the mulberry trees and the people of Wicklow.

The blackbirds symbolize hope because their songs provide a connection between the living and their dead loved ones. When their songs are silenced after Zee’s death, the plant life in Zee’s garden suffers, but when the songs return, the trees and vegetables thrive. In this way, they become a motif of the theme of Grief and Guilt and a symbol of the magic present in this novel. As the spirits of the deceased women of the Callow family, they symbolize the love that continues to exist between Anna Kate and her mother and grandmother. In fact, as a blackbird, Eden can let go of her human pain and give Anna Kate guidance as well as permission to break a promise made when she comes to understand that Anna Kate should remain in Wicklow.

Red Mulberry Trees

The red mulberry trees are ancient trees planted in Wicklow by the Celtic ancestors of the Callow family. The trees protect a mystical portal between the living and the dead. The trees also thrive on the singing of the blackbirds and provide the love, in the form of their fruit, required to allow the living to receive messages from their deceased loved ones. Within the novel, these trees represent several things. First, the mulberry trees are a connection between Anna Kate and her grandmother as they feature prominently in stories Zee told Anna Kate as a child. Second, they are symbolic of the connection between the living and the dead. Finally, these trees represent the love that allows the blackbirds to deliver their messages to the living.

As Anna Kate takes over the café and takes on the responsibility of making the pies, she struggles to figure out the secret ingredient that Zee included to make the pies capable of delivering messages from deceased loved ones. Anna Kate only makes the connection to the mulberry trees when two blackbirds leave her a mulberry leaf on a windowsill. It is then that Anna Kate begins to recall the things Zee told her about her Celtic ancestors and the power of the blackbirds. With Summer’s help, Anna Kate eventually learns about the mulberry extract that the pies must be made with to make them work. In this way, the mulberry trees come to symbolize the deep love Zee and Eden have for Anna Kate, their desire that Anna Kate remain in Wicklow, and the connection that remains between Anna Kate and her deceased loved ones.

Quilts

Seelie made a quilt of old baby clothes for AJ when he was young. She did the same for Ollie, Natalie’s daughter. However, Seelie never made such a quilt for Natalie, and it becomes a matter of contention between the two women. The absence of a quilt for Natalie is symbolic of Seelie’s lack of affection for Natalie. Although Natalie understands that her brother’s death when she was only three was a difficult thing, and it caused Seelie to be more overprotective toward Natalie, she cannot help but feel compared to her brother and come up lacking in Seelie’s view.

As the novel progresses, Seelie learns that Anna Kate has AJ’s quilt and still uses it when she has trouble sleeping. She is thrilled the quilt was found and that AJ’s child benefitted from it her whole life. Natalie’s feelings that her mother prefers others, even Anna Kate, to her intensifies. In the end, however, Natalie learns that her mother was always making her a quilt, because she continued to add to it over the years and used clothing of importance from each of Natalie’s milestones. She finally finished it with material from a bib Natalie made that matched the first bib Natalie wore. This changes the symbolism of the quilt, turning it into a work of unconditional love and a symbol of Seelie’s deep grief, but also her equally deep affection for her daughter. This quilt becomes a symbol of healing between Natalie and Seelie.