Parenting
Ruby really has no one to look up to in her life, not even her parents. Her mother shows no obvious signs of love for her, and this really affects her life growing up. Behind the Scenes at the Museum emphasizes the importance that parental bonds have for children. Although Rudy overcomes her struggle, she makes herself a guarantee that she will never let something like this happen to one of her own children.
Sisterhood
Another important theme in the novel is that of sisterhood. Ruby had three sisters, two of which died tragically. The remaining sister, Patricia, is the only person in the novel in which she can ever find any comfort. Ruby and Patricia realize that their parents were anything but perfect, and have grown closer because of that fact. She also feels sympathy for what Ruby had to go through because she is her sister.
Death
A striking amount of death occurs in Behind the Scenes at the Museum. Early in the novel, we see that Ruby's sister, Gillian, dies in a bus disaster. Later, after he cheated on his wife, Ruby's father dies unexpectedly of a heart attack. All of these deaths have a severe impact on Ruby's life and emotional state. Later, she learns the reason why her mother hardly ever talks to her - Gillian, when she was alive, said that Ruby had caused the death of a twin sister that Ruby never even knew she had.
