How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
I realize something else too. I don't share this double grief. I have a mother and I'm standing so close to her, I can see the years weighing down her skin, can smell her tea-scented breath. I wonder if Bailey's search for Mom would have led her here too, right back to Gram. I hope so. (32.39)
It can be argued that real love is seeing someone for who they are, with the prettiness stripped away, and loving even those less pretty parts. Lennie loves her Gram for so many reasons, and in this moment, she loves her aged skin and tea breath. She realizes, at this moment, that Gram is basically her mother.
Quote #8
I will never stop grieving Bailey because I will never stop loving her. That's just how it is. Grief and love are conjoined, you don't get one without the other. All I can do is love her, and love the world, emulate her by living with daring and spirit and joy. (35.16)
If you could sum up the end of the book in one paragraph, this might be it. Lennie figures out that the best way to cope with grief is through love.
Quote #9
We stare at each other for a long moment and inside that moment I feel like we are kissing more passionately than we ever have even though we aren't touching. (37.33)
If you thought Lennie and Joe couldn't love each other more, think again, because here, they share a moment of understanding. Joe understands Lennie more than he ever has, because he's read all her secret poems. Victorian? Yes. Cornball? Sure. Sweet? Totally.