House of Salt and Sorrows

The Thaumas sisters’ dancing shoes—dubbed “fairy shoes” by youngest sister Verity—are symbols of escape, freedom, and sisterhood. The shoes allow the sisters to escape their daily constraints, particularly the rumored curse that stigmatizes their family. Camille longs to travel far away, where no one knows of the curse. The magical door in the Grotto allows the sisters to travel to different balls throughout the kingdom (which are later revealed to be illusions), where they find joy and companionship, rather than grief and ostracization. The shoes are designed according to each sister’s personality, with Annaleigh choosing seafoam green shoes reminiscent of mermaids. Regardless of the balls’ reality, the shoes and dancing in general provide the sisters with temporary happiness. They convince their father to buy the shoes together, often get dressed together, and hook arms and admire each ball’s specific theme together. The nickname of “fairy shoes” also reinforces House of Salt and Sorrows as a fairy tale retelling. The shoes symbolize the fantastical, as they are described as “insubstantial”—as if they don’t exist, like Kosamaras’s illusions.

In the novel, mirrors are associated with grief and represent the supernatural, hidden truths. In honor of the deceased Eulalie, the Thaumas family covers their mirrors.