A Year Down Yonder Family Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #4

After we got home that night, Grandma showed me another ticket. It was a round-trip to Chicago for me, so I could go with Joey to have some Christmas with Mother and Dad. It must have cost Grandma her last skin. First, though, we'd keep Christmas right here around the spindly tree in the warm front room. Just the three of us, like the old summer visits. (4.120)

What a cozy Christmas tableau. Mary Alice, Joey, and Grandma Dowdel settle down for a charming Christmas that reminds them of the summer visits they had as kids. Families and nostalgia go together like cake and ice cream.

Quote #5

Mrs. Wilcox made a beeline across the room. "You's my long-lost sister!" She flung out her arms to Mrs. Weidenbach, who flinched. Punch went everywhere, and horror and defeat were written in her face. (5.146)

Oh, dear. All this time, Mrs. Weidenbach was so proud of her family background, and how she was supposedly descended from the Pilgrims. But instead, she learns that she was a Burdick and is related to Mrs. Effie Wilcox, of all people. It's not shocking that she spills her punch at that revelation.

Quote #6

Spring didn't come to Chicago like this. I went around with a lump in my throat I couldn't account for. Then a letter came from Mother with a postscript from Dad.

We'd written back and forth all year, though of course I didn't tell them everything. Mother always tucked in a stamp for me to write back. (7.3-4)

Mary Alice misses her parents, of course, and wants to see them again. But at the same time, going home to Chicago will mean leaving the home she's made with her grandmother—and that isn't a welcome thought, either.