How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
The trunk, a small one, held every stitch of clothes I had and two or three things of Mother's that fit me. "Try not to grow too fast," she murmured. "But anyway, skirts are shorter this year." (P.2)
Poor Mary Alice can't help that she's growing bigger and taller—after all, she's a teenager. But her parents can't exactly afford to buy her new clothes right now, so she'll have to make do with her too-short clothes.
Quote #2
I stood there, fifteen, trying to die of shame. Grandma didn't understand about high school. She was trying to get the janitor to enroll me. (1.37)
Oh, dear. Is there anything worse than being embarrassed by your grandmother at a new school? Mary Alice is fifteen years old, which means that she feels embarrassment more acutely than she did as a kid—or will as an adult. Isn't adolescence great?
Quote #3
There were little changes stirring in me. I began to notice how old Grandma was, how hard she worked herself, how far from town she'd roam in the frozen nights, across uneven ground. I began to want to be there with her, to make sure she'd come safely home. (4.60)
Mary Alice is growing up, and not just because she's suddenly taller and more interested in relationships. She's also starting to notice that the grown-ups around her aren't indestructible—even her tough-as-nails grandmother.