Al Capone Does My Shirts

Although the novel never specifies her condition, which would not have been diagnosable in the 1930s, Natalie seems to be on the autism spectrum. Although she can communicate to some extent, Natalie cannot express her emotions or thoughts the way most people can. She sometimes suffers severe emotional outbursts and can become catatonic. She has a strong affinity for certain things, namely buttons and rocks, lemon cake, counting, and indexes, and this makes her unique. Rather than removing these obsessions from her life—as Helen was directed to by Mrs. Kelly—Moose allows Natalie to engage with them because it brings her contentment, much like baseball does for Moose. Natalie’s growing relationship with Moose allows her to express her individuality. Eventually, she begins to express herself more fully, refers to herself in the first person for the first time, and even forms a friendship with a stranger—a prisoner on the island—which suggests that she is capable of more than what her family expects of her. Moose convinces their mother to treat Natalie as who she is, to tell the truth about Natalie’s age rather than cling to a fiction that she will always be 10 years old, and stop trying to “fix” Natalie instead of supporting her development in a real and substantive way. 

Moose and his mother Helen have a tense relationship, largely as a result of how she treats her children. All of her focus seems to be on “fixing” Natalie and all of their family’s major decisions, including moving to Alcatraz Island, revolve around this goal. Because of her intense focus on Natalie, and her assumption that Moose will turn out fine in comparison, Helen understandably does not devote nearly as much time to her son as to her daughter. The main points of contention between Moose and Helen are Moose’s feelings of being neglected and his assumption that his mother would rather be unrealistically optimistic—to the point of dishonestly—than see Natalie as she really is. By the end of the novel, Helen changes her perspective on Natalie, prompted by Moose’s strong rejection of Helen’s perpetual self-delusion that the family can treat Natalie as a permanent 10 year old.

Moose’s father Cam is not around much for Moose because he works many hours to provide for the family financially—all the more so now that they are hoping to enroll Natalie in a special private school for the intellectually disabled. Moose feels more connected to his father than to his mother because Cam sees Moose for who he is—a good kid with concern for others. Cam is in a difficult position, however, because he also wants to support his wife and Natalie and so he abides by Helen’s plans for their daughter to keep the domestic peace. At the same time, he can see Moose’s legitimate concerns and hurt feelings. Cam is finally able to stand up to Helen and assert Natalie’s individuality and her real age near the end of the novel.