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Crash Abby Coogan Quotes

Abby Coogan

Quote 1

Abby sneered, "My big brave brother, Crrrash Coogan, is afraid of mice." (16.60)

Crash's sister, Abby, all but calls him "Little Miss Crash" here. No wonder he feels like he needs to prove his manliness all the time.

"Is Daddy quitting his job, too?" Her face showed what she wanted the answer to be.

"No," said my mom, "not unless you want to live in a hut." (45.20-45.21)

Crash's dad works 70 hours a week, and by the end of the novel, there's no sign he's cutting back. That's in sharp contrast to Crash's mom, who sacrifices her career to spend more time with her family. What sort of message does that send about gender norms?

Abby took a couple bites. She kept staring at my mom. You could tell she was chewing on more than steak.

"Mom?"

"Yes?"

"Can I get my clothes at Second Time Around from now on?" (13.54-13.57)

In an interesting reversal of gender norms, Crash is a huge clotheshorse, while Abby is happy to get her stuff at the thrift shop. What do you think Abby finds attractive about secondhand clothes? What does Crash find so repulsive about them?

"Why did you ask your father about the number of square feet in an acre? Why not your mother?"

Abby had a yellow mustache from melted cheese. She looked stumped for a minute. "I think…I thought…acres was men's stuff." (13.61-13.62)

What Abby really means is math is men's stuff. Oh, no, she didn't! (Oh, yes, she did.) Thankfully, her mom sets her straight.

Abby Coogan

Quote 5

Before he could stop her, Abby snatched the top pair of shorts and pulled them on over her jeans. She checked herself in the mirror. "Oh, Scooter, can I have these, please? Just one pair." (20.11)

Yes, Abby is asking for her grandfather's old underwear. Truly the fashion dream of every 10-year-old girl. Okay, probably not, although these sorts of fads do come and go. But why do you think Abby is so interested in wearing her grandpa's old knickers?

Abby raised her arms and swung around with a grin as big as a hoagie roll. "We all ate a meal together!"

I headed off. The living room was getting dark. I twirled my finger. "Whoopee. Just like a real family." (13.74-13.75)

Abby's excitement over a simple family dinner suggests that it doesn't happen in the Coogan household very often. What do you make of Crash's reaction?

Abby Coogan

Quote 7

As we were pulling into the driveway, Abby piped up: "It must have been terrible not to have a single word. And now he has one. And he can use it for anything!" (37.19)

Being a "glass half full" kind of gal, Abby takes the opposite view: Scooter's one word is a whole lot more than he had a few days ago. Now, that's optimism.