How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
"Boys, good news! Now that the school year has ended, you both have been accepted in new temporary-care homes starting this afternoon." (1.5)
Does the word "temporary" make you feel at home? Uh-uh, we didn't think so. Home is a permanent thing, something it takes time to get used to and comfortable about. We can bet Bud and Bugs are going to feel like they're going to somebody else's home, not to their own.
Quote #2
I did what I do every night before I go to sleep, I checked to make sure everything was there. The way there are more and more kids coming into the Home every day, I had to make sure no one had run off with any of my things. (1.33)
Bud feels scared and defensive partly because everything around him keeps changing. He doesn't feel at home because people keep coming and going. Instead of connecting with people, he feels defensive and protective of his things.
Quote #3
What had really happened was that I woke up from a good sleep because it felt like a steam locomotive had jumped the tracks and chug-chug-chugged its way straight into my nose. (2.18)
You know how sleeping away from home, even at a good friend's house, can keep you awake and thinking for hours? Well, Bud is lucky enough to drift off to sleep, and what happens? He's attacked by a pencil. We think it isn't a real home unless you can actually sleep there. Sleeping is one thing you can't do if you are scared or being attacked by pencils.
Quote #4
Going back to the Home was out […] It's not like it was when I first got there, shucks, half the folks that run it don't even tell you their name and don't remember yours unless you're in trouble all the time or getting ready to move out. (7.39)
We don't really blame Bud for not wanting to go back to a place where he's just another kid no one knows. Bud can't feel at home in a place where people are such strangers that their names are a mystery. A home is a place where everyone knows your name.
Quote #5
"All these people," the mouth organ man said, "are just like you, they're tired, hungry, and a little bit nervous about tomorrow. This here is the right place for ya'll to be 'cause we're all in the same boat. And you boys are nearer to home than you'll ever get." (8.78)
If this really is home, then why is everyone so eager to leave on the next train? What is this place missing that Bud still needs to find?
Quote #6
I said, "You'll watch it yourself, ma'am? You'll make sure no one looks inside of it?" She said, "Son, we don't have no thieving in here, we all look out for each other." (8.98)
One thing the Flint Hooverville has going for it is that it's a tight community, which is certainly something that creates a homey feeling. People here are all in the same boat, so they help each other out and care for each other. Still, life isn't easy here. Nobody really wants to live in a shanty town, so in a lot of ways, Hooverville is just as temporary as a foster home or an orphanage.
Quote #7
I said, "My mother said the same thing, that families should be there for each other all the time. She always used to tell me that no matter where I went or what I did that she'd be there for me, even if she wasn't somewhere that I could see her…" (8.134)
Even though she's not around anymore, Bud's mother is still with him in a lot of ways: she raised him well enough that he's able to get around on his own. He's also a really good kid, and that's partly because he remembers all the good lessons his mother taught him. For most of the book, Bud may not have a physical home, but having his mother with him in some form may help give him the strength to go out and find that home.
Quote #8
As soon as I had the jacket over me the smell of the spice and soap and the sound of the crickets and toady frogs outside made my eyes get real heavy. (11.67)
For the first time in the story, Bud feels safe enough and at home enough to fall asleep for a long time. This is on account of Lefty's good sense of humor, his kindness, and his nice-smelling jacket. Lefty brings a feeling of peace over Bud. If Lefty had invited Bud to stay, would he have felt at home with the Sleets?
Quote #9
All of a sudden I knew that of all of the places in the world that I'd ever been in this was the one. That of all the people I'd ever met these were the ones. This was where I was supposed to be. (14.92)
Once Bud really looks around, he sees each person clearly, and this is how he knows he has found a home. What is it that makes him realize this? This is the first place he's been in a long time where a group of people—a family—has really cared about him. It's almost as if Bud's not able to see things clearly until he's given enough love and comfort to let him see things clearly.
Quote #10
Next to the bed there was a little table with a lamp that had a picture of a skinny little black horse right in the lampshade. (15.5)
Ding-ding-ding-ding. This skinny black horse is the first hint we get that this might be Bud's mother's old room. It's also way different from any room or home Bud has been in before: it's tidy, decorated, and warm. It's made for a kid to feel at home in. It's also another way in which Bud's mother was right: she really is still there for him, even though she's far away.