How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
Cecilia, the youngest, only thirteen, had gone first, slitting her wrists like a Stoic while taking a bath, and when they found her, afloat in her pink pool, with the yellow eyes of someone possessed and her small body giving off the odor of a mature woman, the paramedics had been so frightened by her tranquility that they had stood mesmerized. (1.2)
Cecilia's youth is emphasized at the beginning of this sentence: "youngest," "only thirteen." However, that juvenile character contrasts with the way she seems after her suicide attempt: "mature," "tranquility." It is as though her suicide is her passage into adulthood—a shortcut.
Quote #2
There had never been a funeral in our town before, at least not during our lifetimes. [. . .] Nobody's grandfather had died, nobody's grandmother, nobody's parents, only a few dogs: Tom Burke's beagle, Muffin, who choked on Bazooka Joe bubble gum, and then that summer, a creature who in dog years was still a puppy—Cecilia Lisbon. (2.5)
The neighborhood leads a charmed existence; it's really Happy Valley. People just expect that everything will be fine, especially with their children. They just don't know what to do with a child who decided not to grow up. It's clearly a totally extraordinary experience for the narrators.
Quote #3
The truth was, even the wimpiest boys were more adept than Trip at asking girls out, because their sparrows' chests and knock-knees had taught them perseverance, whereas Trip had never even had to dial a girl's phone number. It was all new to him: the memorization of strategic speeches, the trial runs of possible conversations, the yogic deep breathing, all leading up to the blind, headlong dive into the staticky sea of telephone lines. (3.50)
Coming of age can be a struggle. You know what it's like—having to deal with your weird gawky body getting all out of whack on hormones and growth spurts. But check this out—those difficult moments really do build character. Someone like Trip Fontaine, who magically skips over the awkward stage, doesn't have practice dealing with awkward times.