Flora and Ulysses Courage Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #7

Oh, yes. And. And Mr. Klaus bit my ear. And there was a lot of pain. And the squirrel rescued me. (44.29)

When Flora's dad reports the squirrel's bravery to stand up to an animal much larger than him, her mom can hardly believe it. Now even her ex-husband—who was supposed to kill the rodent—thinks the squirrel is brave.

Quote #8

Flora felt a wave of anger roll through her. "Quit speaking euphemistically," she said. "Quit calling it 'the squirrel situation.' You asked him to kill. You asked him to murder my squirrel!" (44.37)

Flora might not go flying through the air or face off a nasty cat, but she shows courage when she stands up to her mom. Finally she figures out that she can't go along with her mom's wordplay and mind games anymore—she's got to confront her mom, no matter what the cost.

Quote #9

She loved his happiness, his little head, his determined heart, his nutty breath. She loved how beautiful he looked when he flew. (56.18)

Determination and courage is something Flora loves about Ulysses, and we do, too. It's all the more awesome that such daring acts are coming from a tiny squirrel.