How we cite our quotes: (Section.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"Do you need some help?" asked Papa.
"No," said Billy. He wanted to do it on his own.
"Okay," said Papa." Fine." The sharpness had returned to his voice.
Billy finally cut out a bat that was acceptable, but he couldn't figure out how to attach it to the box and also make it appear as if it were flying, suspended in the air. "Now will you help me?" Billy asked Papa. (2.2.10-13)
Remember how Billy seemed cool with getting his dad's help with his diorama at first? That fades pretty quickly. Now Billy wants to be Mr. Independent when it comes to making the big bat for his diorama. Ultimately, our main man figures out that asking for help isn't such a bad thing—heck, Papa helps him make a bat that looks like it's flying.
Quote #5
"All right," said Papa, clapping his hands. "I wouldn't call it a breakthrough yet, but I've been working hard today. Because of you."
Laid out on the table in Papa's work area were several wooden cigar boxes. Each one had various items placed inside it. The inside of one resembled a landscape, another a city. One looked like a funny face with mismatched watch dial eyes, a doorknob nose, and a black plastic comb mustache. The boxes were in differing stages of completion. (2.5.13-14)
Billy isn't the only hard worker in this book. When it comes to perseverance, we know that Papa has that characteristic in the bag. Since he's an artist, he's always looking for inspiration and pushing through tough times when he doesn't know what to create. But he keeps on trying no matter what, and all that hard work starts to pay off when Billy helps his dad get a cool idea to make dioramas. Maybe hard work really just needs a second-grader as a sidekick sometimes.
Quote #6
His eyelids were the problem—they were as heavy as steel. The situation was worse if he lay down, so he rose from his bed and paced around his room. But the bed was so inviting—soft, warm—that he couldn't help taking a break, allowing himself only to sit on it.
He turned his bedside lamp off and on and off and on. He tried to read. He tried to draw. He tried counting backward from one thousand.
He looked at the dragon stamp on the envelope from Ms. Silver. Then he took the pearl in his open palm and stared at it until it blurred. He pretended it really was magic. "Stay awake," he whispered. "Stay awake."
Just then an idea came to him. Billy's idea was to scare himself so badly he couldn't sleep. (3.3.19-22)
Billy's action plan is pretty impressive. He's working so hard to stay up and he's willing to try anything. And when we say anything, we mean it—he's even willing to scare himself silly if it means he'll have a chance of pulling his first all-nighter. Well one thing's for sure: Having so many different options for keeping himself awake shows us just how hard he's working to reach this goal.