The Measure

The Measure is Nikki Erlick’s first novel, published in 2022 by William Morrow. The book was a New York Times Bestseller, and was chosen as The TODAY Show’s “Read with Jenna” book club pick, as well as the Barnes and Noble Discover pick. Erlick has degrees from Harvard and Columbia, and has worked extensively as a travel writer and ghostwriter. Her work has appeared in New York Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, and Newsweek, among others. The Measure poses the question: How do you measure your life? By creating a world in which everyone knows how long their life will be, Erlick explores the philosophical questions raised by such knowledge, as well as the social, cultural, and political implications.

This guide references the eBook edition of the novel, published in 2022 by William Morrow.

Plot Summary

One morning in March, the entire world wakes up to find that a small, wooden box has been left on the doorstep of everyone over the age of 22. From that day on, everyone in the world finds a similar box at their door on the morning of their 21st birthday. Each box is inscribed with the message, “The measure of your life lies within” (2), and inside lies a coil of string indicating the length of the recipient’s life. The novel follows several New Yorkers as they grapple with the lengths of their own strings and the larger social implications of this new knowledge.

Nina and Maura have been together for a few years, living in New York, when they get their boxes. When they open them to find that Nina has a long string, while Maura’s is short, their future plans change drastically as they reconsider their lives together. At Nina’s recommendation, Maura goes to a support group held in the evenings at the school where Nina’s sister, Amie, works. At the meeting, Maura meets Ben, an architect whose girlfriend broke up with him when she discovered his short string. As an exercise, the group leader asks each of them to put their feelings in a letter, which can be addressed to whomever they choose.

The next morning, Amie finds an anonymous letter in her classroom that must have been written during the group meeting. It touches her, and so she writes back, beginning an anonymous correspondence with Ben that will continue for several months. Amie hasn’t looked in her box and has no intention to do so. The correspondence between Amie and Ben becomes a way for both to explore the larger questions raised by the strings.

While individuals have been struggling with the strings’ existence on a personal level, governments around the world are deciding how to deal with the strings as well. In the United States, presidential hopeful Anthony Rollins is assigned to a task force that creates the STAR Initiative, mandating that government officials and military personnel disclose their string lengths. In the case of the military, string length will determine the type of appointment a person receives. For example, short stringers will be restricted from participating in active duty due to the likelihood of them dying during service.

Jack Hunter, Anthony’s nephew, and Javier, his roommate, are recent military academy graduates, intending to go into military service. While Jack is ambivalent about the career, Javier wants it deeply. When they discover that Javier’s string is short and Jack’s is long, Jack proposes that they switch strings so that Javier can go into active duty as he had planned. They do so, and Javier gets the job he always wanted. Jack is assigned desk work, and he keeps his short string a secret from everyone, including his family.

As Anthony’s nephew, Jack is often asked to attend his campaign events. Upon discovering that Jack’s string is short, Anthony uses it to counterbalance criticism that he is discriminating against short-stringers. This discrimination is fueled by a series of shootings by short-stringers, who begin to be seen as unstable and violent. Javier is angry with Jack for allowing Anthony to use his short string as a political prop, and to maintain their friendship, Jack decides to act—he speaks out at one of Anthony’s events, making clear that he does not support his uncle’s anti-short-stringer rhetoric, and the tide of discrimination and legislation begins to turn. Jack and Javier meet at a New Year’s Eve party and reconcile, but Jack knows that he needs to do more for Javier.

Meanwhile, Nina and Maura decide to go on vacation to Italy, and Maura gives Ben her keys so he can set up a surprise. At their apartment, he meets Amie, and after a few dates, he realizes that she is the person he has been corresponding with. When he finally tells Amie this truth, along with the truth about his short-string, she falters, briefly distancing herself from him as she struggles to face the reality that, if she begins a life with him, their time together will be short. Nina and Maura decide to get married, and at their wedding, Amie and Ben reconnect and recommit.

After Javier dies on a rescue mission, Jack decides to go public with their string-switching scheme. By doing so, he acts as a catalyst for dismantling the STAR Initiative and rolling back institutionalized discrimination against short stringers.

Nearly 10 years after the boxes appeared, Maura dies. Ben and Amie are married and have two children. When Ben is diagnosed with a terminal illness, they are prepared; however, one day, on the way home from his doctor’s office, they are both killed in a car accident. Nina finally opens Amie’s box to find a short string. She adopts their children and, although they live in the suburbs, they travel to the city often to visit a building Ben built, and a bench in Central Park that Amie had engraved. At the park, Nina reflects on the way attitudes towards short-stringers have shifted—now, they are seen as resolute and courageous. She hopes that she can live her life as a short-stringer would, bravely and without fear.