Dancing on the Edge Transformation Quotes

How we cite our quotes: Chapter.Paragraph

Quote #4

I wanted them to see that I had changed […] I didn't dance wild anymore. I even bought a pretty pair of purple leg warmers and had started to grow my hair so I could wear ribbons like the other girls in the class. I felt proud and important, but the kids hadn't changed. They liked the seat belt, but not the seat belt painter's daughter. (7.24).

Not only do Granddaddy Opal and Gigi start making an effort to get along, but Miracle changes, too. Nurtured by Granddaddy Opal's love and life lessons, she begins to leave behind many of the peculiarities that separated her from other students. Still, she's frustrated by her classmates' inability to see the change in her personality.

Quote #5

Aunt Casey had decided to go for a degree in psychology instead of just taking random courses in it […] She had even begun to dress differently. Instead of spandex and tight sparkly shirts, she wore baggy jeans and extra large tee shirts and socks and flat wide sandals that had no back strap and kept flying off her feet. She had to learn a whole new way of walking. Her hair was combed down, too, less stiff, and she kept it dyed red and wore almost no makeup. (14.23)

We have to say that abandoning the spandex and high heels was a good move for Aunt Casey. It's interesting how, as her appearance changes, we actually get to like her more. She might seem like a brain-dead Barbie doll at the beginning of the book, but she undergoes a major transformation as she begins to learn more about psychology.

Quote #6

Everyone crowded around me in group, wanting to see, asking me if my legs hurt. Leah called me lumpy-legs, and I told her to hush her mouth. Everyone except the counselors clapped. (26.1)

You go, girl—the Miracle of old never would have been able to stand up to The Cedars's resident bully and tell her off, but our girl's come a long way.