How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
Only a hunter like M.C. could distinguish the telltale signs of trails. Anyone could follow the footpaths. (1.142)
Just so we're clear on this: M.C. is the master-hunter. He is a thirteen-year-old Bear Grylls, and totally different than just "anyone" because he's that close to nature. His relationship with nature is his identity.
Quote #5
Grapes grew small and not at all sweet to the taste.
Used to be Mama could make quarts of jelly out of a yield, M.C. thought, but not now.
Reluctantly, he thought of the mining cut at the top of Sarah's, and the harsh acids that washed down when it rained. Did they poison the grapes? (3.41-43)
The short answer to M.C.'s question: Yes. Yes, the harsh acids from the mining are ruining everything natural and good about Sarah's Mountain. Of course, it doesn't seem huge that the grapes aren't sweet or able to yield jelly, but for M.C., it's subtly changing the habits and ways (not to mention the diet) of the Higgins. And so for him, it's a major change simply because it signals an even greater change: he's losing his mountain home.
Quote #6
A shudder passed over M.C. like a heavy chill. Jones studied M.C.'s face. M.C. was so skilled at living free in the woods, at reading animal signs, at knowing when the weather would change even slightly. Jones could convince himself at odd moments that the boy had second sight. And now, half afraid to ask but worried for his children on their way to Harenton, his Banina, he said, "What is it you see?" (4.35)
M.C.'s "second sight" comes from how close he is to nature. It may seem mystical and mysterious—enough to make Jones "half afraid"—but here's another way to think of it: M.C. is just really close to nature. So close that he can actually sense the ground's vibrations and the air's currents, enough so to know things like when rain will come.