How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
He missed whiskey not at all. Since The Day, he had drunk hardly anything, nor found need for it. (8.5)
Rehab ain't got nothing on the nuclear apocalypse. Randy has been so focused on protecting the people around him that he doesn't even think about touching booze. Good on him.
Quote #8
Alice would never admit it aloud, but for the first time in her thirty years as librarian of Fort Repose she felt fulfilled, even important. (8.61)
Alice is another one who might slightly prefer life after The Day, or at least parts of it. The library, once the scorn of a town hypnotized by exciting movies and loud music, is now the most popular spot around. She used to struggle to get kids to come in—now she struggles to keep them out.
Quote #9
Bill was wearing gray flannels raggedly cut off above the knees, tennis shoes, and nothing else [...] He no longer looked like a Caesar, but like an unkempt Jove. (9.28)
This is a different Bill than the one we first first met. After the death of his wife, he rebuilds his life by focusing on his new job: assistant mechanic. No pay, but the benefits are swell. This has the twofold effect of making him feel like an indispensable member of the community, while also giving him a sense of purpose he's lacked since his retirement.