The Ten Thousand Doors of January

“If we address stories as archaeological sites, and dust through their layers with meticulous care, we find at some level there is always a doorway. A dividing point between here and there, us and them, mundane and magical. It is at the moments when the doors open, when things flow between the worlds, that stories happen.”

Yule’s explanation of the relationship between Doors and stories highlights the theme that words are powerful, and stories are worth telling. Harrow uses this early reference to Doors to foreshadow the significance of following stories to find Doors, and walking through Doors to find worlds. This quote piques the reader’s interest in what’s to come and tells the reader that stories will have particular significance throughout the novel. 

“Reason and rationality reigned supreme, and there was no room for magic or mystery. There was no room, it turned out, for little girls who wandered off the edge of the map and told the truth about the mad, impossible things they found there.”

After giving the historical context for the beginning of the 20th century, January contrasts the societal value of “reason” with her supernatural, but true, discovery of a Door. Because the discovery of other worlds would bring change and chaos to his own world, Locke squelches January’s finding in the name of peace and prosperity. 

“People are always uncertain about me: my skin is sort of coppery-red, as if it’s covered all over with cedar sawdust, but my eyes are round and light and my clothes are expensive. Was I a pampered pet or a serving girl? Should the poor manager serve me tea or toss me in the kitchens with the maids? I was what Mr. Locke called ‘an in-between sort of thing.’”

January’s skin color contributes to Harrow’s theme of race as a social construct. She does not fit into society’s classifications of either black or white, so people are unsure of how to treat her. People’s reactions to January’s in-between coloring show how society in the 20th century assigned value to people based on their skin color.