Funny how your brain builds up strange images of the characters when you read. For me, Rhoda was... 
 How does that work? Well, I suppose there was something doll-like about Rhoda. She has to be one of the scariest book villains ever. Another reason to give children a wide berth (as if I needed one). This was a very scary book - the evil twin of We Need To Talk About Kevin. Only Christine, Rhoda's mum, never did talk about Rhoda. To anyone. And it did not end well, people! I could've lived without the 'nature vs nurture' issue and the 'discovery', that sought to explain Rhoda - I don't think the story needed it; it could stand up without explaining Rhoda's nature. However, there is a lot of psychology and sociology woven into the book - interesting in its own right - and I guess you could say its part of what the book's about. A really creepy read...