Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of sexual content and mental illness.

While Behind the Net steers Pippa and Jamie along a path of realizing their most cherished ambitions—including rewarding and fulfilling romantic love, a dream they never considered—the plot also reflects on the pleasures to be found in pursuing goals, even when success is uncertain.

Over the course of the novel, Pippa discovers that although a successful music career is her goal, it is making the music that truly matters. She most aptly demonstrates the rewards of following one’s dreams when she acknowledges that even if she doesn’t hear back from music producer Ivy Matthews, she intends to pursue a career writing and performing music. Pippa at one point reflects on the risk of failure and how painful that would be, thinking, “I don’t know if I’m ready to fail hard at something that matters, but there’s a tiny, stubborn part of myself that isn’t ready to give up yet” (242). She understands that being a musician is a less stable career but is willing to take that risk for the reward of doing what she loves. When she’s invited to play at

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