Family Dysfunction and Found Family in Spiral by Bal Khabra: A Theme Analysis

The Thematic Claim: Family Is Chosen, Not Inherited

In Spiral, Bal Khabra builds a world where biological family often fails, while the family one builds through love and loyalty becomes the true source of safety and identity. The novel’s central claim is that family is not defined by blood but by the deliberate, repeated choice to care for one another. This theme unfolds through the parallel journeys of Sage Beaumont and Elias Westbrook, both of whom are shaped by abandonment and exploitation, and who ultimately find healing by creating a family of their own—culminating in the adoption of a child and the celebration of a chosen community.

Biological Family Dysfunction: The Wounds That Shape

Sage’s relationship with her parents is marked by neglect and emotional hunger. As a teenager, she becomes the de facto guardian of her younger brother Sean, working double shifts to keep them afloat. In a moment of raw honesty, she admits that even after years of mistreatment, she would still let her parents back into her life “just to pretend I had their love” (ch. 13). This confession reveals the deep pull of biological ties, even when they are toxic. Sage’s longing for unconditional love—love not tied to what she can do for someone—becomes the emotional core of her character. She has built a life around ballet and her brother, but she still craves the validation that her parents never gave her.

Elias’s biological father, Elias Johnson, embodies the exploitative side of family. In chapter 44, Elias confronts the man who blackmailed his adoptive parents when Elias was eighteen. Johnson had orchestrated a scheme to make Elias appear to use drugs, threatening his hockey career and college acceptance unless he was paid. Elias has been sending him money ever since, not out of love but to prevent further blackmail. The confrontation is stark: Elias hands over a final check and says, “This is it. That’s the last check you’ll get from me.” He feels nothing—only resignation. The scene underscores how biological connection can be weaponized, turning a parent into a predator.

The Chosen Family in Action: Care as a Verb

Against this backdrop of dysfunction, the novel presents a counter-model of family built through action. Elias’s adoptive parents, Jane and his father, are warm and welcoming. When Sage meets them for the first time, they envelop her in a hug and treat her like a daughter. Elias reflects that family dinners have always been important to him, whether with his parents or with his college friends. This is a family that chooses to show up, to cook together, and to celebrate each other’s successes.

Sage’s relationship with Sean is another example of chosen family. She steps into a parental role not because she is asked, but because she loves him. She takes him to school events, sneaks him out for ice cream, and works extra shifts so he can have a better life. In chapter 11, she calls herself his guardian and says, “I’m responsible for him.” This is not a burden she resents; it is a role she embraces. Sean, in turn, dedicates his high school graduation to her, calling her “the one person in his life who has always been a constant.” Their bond is built on years of mutual care, not biology.

The friend group—Aiden Crawford, Summer, Kian, Dylan, and others—functions as an extended family. They celebrate together, tease each other, and step in when someone needs help. When Elias faces the fallout of his biological father’s threats, Aiden says, “We’ll deal with it,” and Elias reflects that he has his “real family” (ch. 46). This chosen family is not perfect—they have their own conflicts and quirks—but they are reliable.

The Culmination: Adoption, Belonging, and Home

The theme reaches its fullest expression in the epilogue, set three years after the main events. Sage and Elias have married at Lake Ontario, and they have adopted Nina, an eleven-year-old girl whose parents abandoned her at Sage’s ballet studio. The adoption is presented as a mutual choice: they fostered Nina first, and “the day she chose us to be her parents was the best day of my life.” This is the ultimate refutation of biological determinism—family is not about who gives birth, but about who chooses to stay.

The epilogue also shows the extended family gathering for Sean’s graduation. Aiden and Summer give Sean the keys to a house near Dalton University, a home that Aiden inherited from his grandparents. This gesture symbolizes the passing on of belonging: a physical space that represents safety and continuity. Sage reflects that she has never had a place to call home, and seeing Sean receive this gift makes her heart “crack in two before it bound itself back together.” The final image is of the whole group embracing, with Sage thinking, “Just us, and our little family.”

Complexity and Contradiction: The Messiness of Chosen Family

The novel does not present chosen family as a simple cure-all. Sage’s lingering desire for her parents’ love shows that healing is not linear. Even as she builds a new life, she admits she would still let her parents in if they showed up—a painful contradiction that makes her growth feel real. Similarly, Elias’s decision to keep paying his biological father for years, despite the blackmail, reveals how even chosen family can be haunted by biological ties. He only breaks free when he decides that his adoptive parents and Sage deserve better than to have his past dictate their present.

The adoption of Nina also carries complexity. Nina’s parents abandoned her, but she is not simply rescued; she is given agency. The novel emphasizes that she chose to stay with Sage and Elias, and that choice is what makes the family real. This nuance suggests that found family is not about replacing one set of parents with another, but about creating a space where love is freely given and received.

Symbolic Threads: The Lake, Pointe Shoes, and the Idea of Home

The lake at Lake Ontario, where Sage and Elias marry, functions as a symbol of new beginnings. It is a natural, open space—unlike the cramped apartments and neglected houses of their pasts. Their wedding there is a quiet, deliberate act, a choice to build a home together.

Pointe shoes represent Sage’s identity as a dancer and her ability to create beauty from discipline. In the epilogue, she has secretly purchased the ballet studio on Brunswick, turning the place where she once struggled into a space where she can nurture the next generation. Nina, who first appears in Sage’s ballet class, becomes part of that legacy. The studio becomes a home for both of them, a physical manifestation of the family Sage has built.

The skipping stone and peonies also appear in the novel, though their meanings are more personal. The skipping stone evokes childhood play and the idea of skipping across surfaces without sinking—a metaphor for resilience. Peonies, often associated with healing and compassion, echo the nurturing qualities of the chosen family. These symbols reinforce the theme without being heavy-handed.

Study Questions and Answers

1. How does Sage’s role as Sean’s guardian complicate the idea of family?

Sage becomes a parent to Sean out of necessity, but she also chooses that role. Her love for him is genuine, and she works double shifts to give him a better life. However, she still longs for her own parents’ approval, showing that biological ties can create conflicting emotions even when they are harmful.

2. What does Elias’s confrontation with his biological father reveal about the theme?

The confrontation shows that biological connection does not guarantee love or safety. Elias’s father exploited him for money, and Elias feels nothing but resignation when he cuts ties. This reinforces the idea that family is defined by care, not blood.

3. How does the adoption of Nina represent the culmination of the theme?

Nina is abandoned by her parents, but Sage and Elias foster her and give her the freedom to choose them. Her adoption is a mutual decision, symbolizing that family is built on choice and love, not obligation.

4. In what ways does the friend group function as a chosen family?

The friends celebrate together, support each other through crises, and step in when needed. Aiden’s offer to help Elias deal with his father’s threats and the group’s presence at Sean’s graduation show that they are a reliable, chosen community.

5. What is the significance of the keys Aiden and Summer give to Sean?

The keys to the off-campus house represent a physical home, something Sean and Sage never had. Aiden’s decision to pass down his grandparents’ house symbolizes the passing on of belonging and the idea that home is not a place but a network of people who choose to care for each other.