How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
My whole life reminded me of how it felt to ride, when Greenie and I were little, in the back of Greenie's mother's car, an ancient Pacer with a seat that faced backward and left us staring at places we'd already been and drivers who didn't want to make eye contact. I was facing the wrong direction, but time still went forward, gliding toward destinations I couldn't see or choose. (33.4)
Leave it to Pearl to get all poetic on us. Maybe she feels like she's going backward and just floating through life because she's not being purposeful with her choices. Many times, she waits until the moment to decide what to do, without thinking through the consequences. It turns out that's not the best way to decide stuff.
Quote #5
Occasionally, you saw muscled men in helmets, sunglasses, and Spandex using the bike lanes of Fallbrook, but mostly it was dark-skinned men in ball caps. "They," my mother said, "have no choice." (34.8)
Pearl's mom might be talking about riding a bike with no helmet here, but we'd like to think what she says is much more telling than just her thoughts about cycling. She fills Pearl in on the fact that the undocumented workers don't have as many choices as Pearl does in life.
Quote #6
Then, taking just one more glance at the house, I ran to the lilac bush and began to pick my way down the rocky slope to the river. (43.28)
It only takes Pearl a split-second to decide to look for Amiel after the fire starts. We get to see her make the decision as it happens, and we aren't surprised to learn it includes a couple of lies (to Hoyt, Robby, her mom, and Greenie) and little planning. Pearl instantly knows what she wants to do and goes through with it.