The One Safe Place Character Analysis

The support of friends and family can help contribute to a character's ability to overcome difficulties. In The One Safe Place by Tania Unsworth, Devin was able to overcome his problems with the help of his friends and family.

Devin's grandfather helps Devin overcome his difficulties throughout the story. At the beginning of the book, Devin was struggling to take care of the farm on his own when his grandfather died and remembered his grandfather once said: "' You'll go there someday too, Dev.' His grandfather had told him 'When you're ready to leave.'" [referring to the city] (p.9). His grandfather's words helped Devin overcome the difficulty of working alone and to find someone to help him with his farm. In chapter 17, as Devin smelled the scent of Rosemary, he remembered his grandfather say: " It helps improve your memory. A long time ago people used it in graves for remembrance. " (p.185). The scent helped Devin find his way out of the Dream, regain his memory, and find out that the body he was currently in belonged to an old man when he was having a difficult time in the Place.

At the beginning of the story, Devin was caught stealing a piece of bread and Roman stopped by to say "I'll pay for the bread. " (p.46). Roman's arrival prevented Devin from getting beat up by the baker when he really needed food but couldn't afford it in the City. Then, in the final chapter of the book, Roman says "I can see them all. Most of them still have their lights flashing. But the ones behind the farmyard and the meadow -- those are out." (p.262). This helped Devin know which laser posts he can escape from and which he can't, and knowing this allowed Devin to escape successfully with everyone else (including Roman) without the Administrator stopping them. Finally, Roman helped Devin overcome his difficulties by paying for the bread and telling him where he could escape towards the end of the