How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
They spent a few minutes admiring [Mr. Hook's] gray horse, and Tom tried to persuade Birdy to stay to supper, but again he wouldn't. He'd had a fine dinner, but he wanted to get back. Tom knew he was uneasy in front of Mr. Hook and let him go, but he felt sorry as the old man drove off. (29.25)
A nicely dressed Mr. Hook arrives at the Dolan house on Christmas in a nice sleigh pulled by a nice horse. Birdy feels uncomfortable, not just because his things aren't as new and shiny, but also because being from different economic classes can make people feel like they have nothing in common. The next year, however, Tom and Polly Ann are able to convince Birdy to stay, and he and Mr. Hook get along well. That shows that class shouldn't get in the way of friendship, even though it might seem to at first.
Quote #5
Tom thought that made a lot of rollingstock, and he felt mighty insignificant as he walked back across the bridge to talk to Mr. Armond. (34.25)
Is a rollingstock, like, a mix between a rolling chair and a laughingstock? That may be more interesting, but it's old-timey lingo for things like wagons, carriages, and surreys. When Tom first goes to Mr. Armond's, he has to park his old horse and wagon alongside Mr. Armond's fancy-shmancy new rollingstock. It makes Tom feel pretty puny, even though he's there to make an impressive business offer for a boy his age. This is another moment that shows how money can make a person feel super powerful or utterly powerless.
Quote #6
The house and Birdy's small barn were weathered. [….] The shingle roofs were patched here and there, sometimes with newer shingles, sometimes with pieces of tin. The buildings stood between two open fields where Birdy raised just enough crops and mowed just enough hay to keep his animals and himself alive. The critters were like himself—wiry, old, and tough. (36.16)
Birdy has very little as far as material possessions go. As Tom puts it, "Birdy was hardly better off than the Dolans had been"—before Tom gets the Breen money, of course (54.37). However, Birdy never seems to begrudge his poverty. He knows how to make ends meet, and he seems at peace with his way of life.