How we cite our quotes: (Page number)
Quote #7
And so when you hear the word, you hear the original spiritual meaning. Everything is all right between you and your god, and therefore between you and the world. To be irie is to be in a high and content spiritual place. In the word, you hear the invention of religion itself. (24)
Lester Barnes’ flippant use of the word irie sends Natasha over the edge. It’s not just a cool tourist phrase to take back to your friends after Spring Break; it’s a meaningful word in the Jamaican culture. Of course, Natasha’s not a Rastafarian, but her annoyance levels have been on the rise ever since her dad started adopting his old Jamaican accent to prepare for their deportation.
Quote #8
She's wearing her backpack on one shoulder and I can see the Deus Ex Machina print again. Was it really just this morning that we met? This morning that I wanted to blow wherever the wind took me? What I wouldn't give for God to really be in the machine. (307)
Daniel’s wishing for an easy way out—a convenient twist that would save him and Natasha from their hopeless circumstances. Interestingly, meeting Natasha could be considered a deus ex machina of another color: What are the odds of him spending the entire day with a cute girl before she’s deported and realizing that he doesn’t want to just go along with his parents’ plan for his life? Check out our full analysis of deus ex machina here.
Quote #9
And because she knows airplanes can be lonely places and because she knows how desperate loneliness can be, she pays extra attention to her passengers. She takes care of them with an earnestness no other attendant does...Irene thinks of herself as a guardian angel with metallic wings. And so it is now that she's making her final checks before takeoff, looking for passengers who are going to need a little extra help. The young man in 7A is writing in a little black notebook. (342)
In one last nod to the theme of spirituality, Irene thinks of herself as a “guardian angel with metallic wings” for passengers who need some emotional support. Interestingly, she becomes a guardian angel for Daniel and Natasha, too. By working up the courage to tell Natasha her story, Irene reunites Natasha with her long lost love, conveniently sitting in the row behind her. Side note: We love the idea of angels having little pilot wing badges.