Genre
Children’s novel.
Setting and Context
At sea and land (England).
Narrator and Point of View
Sophie and Codie are the main narrators who utilize the first-person point of view in their narrations.
Tone and Mood
Suspenseful, merry, fun, frightful, triumphant.
Protagonist and Antagonist
Sophie is the protagonist. The vehement sea waves are the antagonists.
Major Conflict
Sailing fruitfully amid the volatile sea weather and waves.
Climax
The sailors' safe landing on land that occurs in chapter sixty-two.
Foreshadowing
The title "The Wanderer" foreshadows the main activity in Creech’s novel: sailing.
Understatement
N/A
Allusions
There is an allusion to poetry in chapter sixty-one where "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" is recited. Cody alludes to religion in chapter sixty-nine when he mentions heaven.
Imagery
The phone calls made in chapter sixty-seven exemplify jubilance. The callers and receivers are thrilled because the sailing was a successful feat.
Bompie’s ill health evokes imageries of a vulnerable elderly man.
The long time spent on sailing impacts the sailors’ walking abilities. As a result, they wobble and strive to re-learn how to walk well upon arriving on land.
Paradox
In chapter sixty-three Sophie's sea-sickness, which she feels while on land, is paradoxical considering that they have been sailing all through.
Parallelism
Cody and Sophie’s narratives about the sailing experiences are parallel.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
'The Windsor Castle,' in chapter seventy, is synonymous with the monarchy (the queen precisely.)
Personification
The sea is personified because it is given the ability to speak and call Sophie.
