The Strawberry Lip Balm Symbol in Sisters of the Lost Nation by Nick Medina

The Strawberry Lip Balm as a Physical Object

In Sisters of the Lost Nation, the strawberry lip balm is a small, unremarkable tube of pink wax with a red base and a rounded green cap. It is the kind of everyday item a teenage girl might carry in her pocket or keep on her nightstand—cheap, scented, and easy to overlook. Yet within the novel’s central mystery, this tiny object becomes one of the most potent clues linking a missing girl to the hotel’s forbidden eighth floor and the trafficking operation that operates there. The lip balm first appears in the narrative on Day 33, when Anna Horn, working as a chambermaid at the Grand Nacre Casino and Resort, finds it beneath the bed in suite 808. From that moment, it transforms from a mundane cosmetic into a source of panic, a piece of evidence, and finally a symbol of the vulnerability and exploitation that haunt the reservation’s young women.

Where the Lip Balm Appears

The lip balm recurs at several key moments, each time carrying a slightly different weight. Its first appearance is in Chapter 6 (Day 33), when Anna is cleaning suite 808 after being caught spying on the suite by Fox Ballard. She notices a small green object under the bed, retrieves it, and discovers it is a tube of strawberry lip balm. The scent of the pink wax fills her with “panic like none she’d ever known,” a reaction that signals the object is not just a stray piece of trash but a clue tied to something sinister. In Chapter 9 (Day 33), Anna flees the suite clutching the lip balm in her fist, screaming for Fox and Grace, and then searches the casino, bars, pool, arcade, and parking lot for them. She later squeezes the tube in her pocket as she confronts her mother about Grace’s whereabouts, using it as a physical anchor for her growing fear. The object reappears in Chapter 36 (Day 31), when Grace, before leaving to meet Emily, gathers her wallet, keys, and lip balm from the nightstand—a detail that confirms Grace owns a similar tube and that the lip balm found in suite 808 likely belongs to her. Finally, in Chapter 35 (Day 34), Anna, exhausted and searching for her missing sister, reflects that “something as small as the strawberry lip balm—something she could easily miss—could be the answer she was looking for.” This line crystallizes the object’s role as a clue and a symbol of hope.

Shifting Meanings: From Mundane to Menacing

The lip balm’s meaning evolves across these appearances. Initially, it is a trivial personal item, the kind of thing a girl might use to keep her lips soft. When Anna finds it under the bed in a suite that has been used for illicit activity—beer bottles, rumpled sheets, and signs of recent occupation—the object becomes a marker of a girl’s presence in a dangerous place. The fact that it is strawberry-scented, a flavor associated with youth and innocence, heightens the contrast between the object’s harmless appearance and the threat it represents. Anna’s immediate panic suggests she recognizes the lip balm as belonging to Grace, or at least to a girl like her, and that its presence in suite 808 implicates Grace in the trafficking operation. The lip balm thus shifts from a mundane cosmetic to a piece of forensic evidence, a tangible link between the missing girl and the hotel’s eighth floor.

As Anna carries the lip balm with her, it becomes a talisman of her fear and determination. In Chapter 9, she clutches it while searching for Fox and Grace, and later squeezes it in her pocket as she confronts her mother. The physical pressure she applies to the tube mirrors the emotional pressure building inside her. By Chapter 35, the lip balm has become a symbol of the search itself—a small, easily overlooked detail that might hold the key to finding Grace. Anna’s reflection that the lip balm “could be the answer” elevates it from a mere clue to a representation of the hope that persists even in the face of overwhelming odds. The object’s meaning has thus transformed from a sign of danger to a sign of possibility, from evidence of wrongdoing to a beacon for resolution.

Character and Theme Connections

The lip balm is deeply tied to Anna Horn and Grace Horn. For Anna, the lip balm is a reminder of her failure to protect her sister. She had warned Grace to stay away from the eighth floor, and finding the lip balm there confirms that Grace ignored her warning. The object becomes a physical manifestation of Anna’s guilt and her desperate need to find Grace before it is too late. For Grace, the lip balm is a marker of her secret life—the nights she sneaks out, the lies she tells, and the dangers she courts. The fact that Grace carries her own lip balm, as shown in Chapter 36, suggests that the tube found in suite 808 is likely hers, making the object a direct link between Grace and the trafficking operation. This connection underscores the theme of missing and murdered Indigenous women, as Grace becomes one of many young women who vanish from the reservation, their disappearances often ignored or dismissed.

The lip balm also connects to the theme of exploitation of Indigenous women and labor. The eighth floor of the Grand Nacre is reserved for VIP suites, and Anna notes that only white women maintain those suites while darker-skinned staff work in lower positions. The lip balm found in suite 808 suggests that a young Indigenous woman—likely Grace—has been brought there against her will, a victim of the same exploitation that pervades the hotel’s operations. The object thus becomes a symbol of the ways in which Indigenous women are commodified and discarded, their personal belongings left behind as evidence of their suffering. Additionally, the lip balm ties into the theme of family bonds and sibling loyalty. Anna’s determination to use the lip balm as a clue reflects her unwavering commitment to her sister, even when Grace’s own choices have put her in danger. The object becomes a testament to the strength of their bond, frayed but not broken.

Study Questions

1. Why does Anna react with such intense panic when she finds the strawberry lip balm under the bed in suite 808?

Anna’s panic stems from her immediate recognition that the lip balm belongs to Grace. She had warned Grace to stay away from the eighth floor, and finding the object there confirms that Grace has been in the suite—a place associated with the trafficking operation. The lip balm’s presence transforms Anna’s vague suspicions into concrete evidence, shattering her hope that Grace might be safe. The panic also reflects Anna’s guilt, as she realizes she failed to protect her sister despite her warnings.

2. How does the lip balm function as a clue, and what does it reveal about the trafficking operation?

The lip balm functions as a physical link between Grace and the eighth floor. Its presence under the bed in suite 808 indicates that Grace has been in that room, likely as a victim of the trafficking operation. The object also reveals the operation’s methods: the suite is used for illicit activities, and the personal belongings of victims are left behind, suggesting a lack of care for the women involved. For Anna, the lip balm becomes a starting point for her search, a tangible piece of evidence that she can use to trace Grace’s whereabouts.

3. In what ways does the lip balm’s meaning change from the beginning of the novel to the end?

Initially, the lip balm is a mundane personal item, the kind of thing any teenage girl might own. When Anna finds it in suite 808, it becomes a source of panic and a piece of evidence linking Grace to danger. As Anna carries it with her, it transforms into a talisman of her determination and a symbol of hope. By the end of the novel, the lip balm represents the possibility of finding Grace and the resilience of family bonds in the face of tragedy. Its meaning shifts from a sign of danger to a sign of hope, from evidence of wrongdoing to a beacon for resolution.

4. How does the lip balm connect to the broader themes of missing and murdered Indigenous women and the exploitation of Indigenous women?

The lip balm connects to these themes by serving as a tangible reminder of the vulnerability of Indigenous women. Grace, a young Indigenous girl, is taken and exploited, and her personal belongings—like the lip balm—are left behind as evidence of her suffering. The object highlights the ways in which Indigenous women are commodified and discarded, their disappearances often ignored or dismissed. The lip balm also underscores the systemic failures that allow such exploitation to occur, as the hotel’s eighth floor operates with impunity, protected by figures like Fox Ballard and Chairman Eaton Ballard. The object thus becomes a symbol of the broader crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women, a crisis that the novel’s author addresses in the Author’s Note.

Conclusion

The strawberry lip balm in Sisters of the Lost Nation is a deceptively simple object that carries immense narrative weight. It begins as a trivial cosmetic, becomes a source of panic and a piece of evidence, and ultimately transforms into a symbol of hope and family loyalty. Through its recurrence, the lip balm ties together the novel’s central themes of missing and murdered Indigenous women, exploitation, and the bonds that hold families together. It is a reminder that even the smallest objects can hold the key to the most profound truths, and that the search for a missing loved one often hinges on the most overlooked details. For Anna, the lip balm is not just a clue—it is a promise that she will not stop until she finds her sister.