Birthday Girl

Jordan is the protagonist of the novel and one of its two first-person point-of-view characters. She is a 19-year-old student of landscape design. She has blonde hair and blue eyes and is described as very beautiful.

At the beginning of the novel, Jordan is struggling. She works double shifts to make ends meet and grapples with college loans. Her father and stepfather, more importantly, are emotionally unsupportive, and her mother left the family when she was four. The only support Jordan has is from her older sister, Cam; her boss, Shel; and her best-friend-turned-boyfriend, Cole. However, Cole has recently grown apathetic toward Jordan. When Jordan’s car gets wrecked and she and Cole are evicted from their flat, Jordan’s troubles compound. She resembles the “damsel in distress” archetype of romantic and heroic narratives. However, Jordan subverts the stereotype through her strong character traits. By insisting on paying her own way and refusing to become a stripper at her sister’s urging, Jordan shows that she is a resilient, intelligent, and powerful young woman.

Jordan, while independent, also craves stability and domesticity. Because of her childhood of neglect and financial hardships, Jordan is attracted to order and material largesse.