How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
She guessed she had noticed when she had stripped off her T-shirt that her breasts seemed to be pointing out—maybe. But she had convinced herself that wasn’t true. Dicey shrugged. There wasn’t much she could do about getting a bosom, but she didn’t have to like it. (1.28)
It’s safe to say that Dicey is not the target market for a training bra. But jokes aside, this reluctance shows something more going on inside Dicey. It's not that she doesn't want to get a bosom, so to speak. It's that she doesn't like what that symbolizes—growing up, maturing, letting go.
Quote #2
The only class she couldn’t think in was home ec, because there you had to do things. Stupid things, Dicey reported to James. They were starting with sewing, buttons first […] But Dicey had much better things to do. She had her own routine. (1.191)
Dicey rejects traditional "girly" things, like sewing, because she’d much rather do "boy" things like building a boat or learning mechanical drawing, a class that isn’t offered to girls. Does that seem fair to you?
Quote #3
Dicey tucked the shirt in at the waist of her cutoffs. Looking down, she saw that her bosom pushed the front of the shirt out a little. She quickly pulled it out again, so it would hang loose. (2.166)
This moment (among others) sets Dicey apart from other girls her age, and other YA heroines, too. Take Margaret from Judy Blume’s Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret, for example: she can’t wait to get her period and boobs, while Dicey's here hoping she can hold on to her childhood a little longer.
Quote #4
Dicey whipped her apron up over her head and rolled it into a ball. She grabbed her books, fast, because Miss Eversleigh was moving toward her. She rushed out of the room, slamming the apron into the trash basket by the door. (3.168)
Consider Voigt’s word choice here: Dicey "slammed" the apron into the trash basket, kind of like a basketball player slam-dunking a ball into the net. Not only is Dicey throwing away a symbol of femininity, she’s doing it in a very un-feminine way.
Quote #5
She wore makeup on her eyes, lips, and skin. Her hair had every strand in a particular place. The woman looked up and caught Dicey’s eye. "Can I help you?" she asked. Dicey shook her head and turned her attention back to Gram. (4.82)
Dicey’s almost like a little kid hiding behind her mom here. She’s able to lead her three brothers and sisters from Massachusetts to Maryland, but lipstick is scary?
Quote #6
"My granddaughter needs a bra," Gram said.
Dicey looked away. She looked back at Gram, angry. She looked at the saleslady, who was staring at her. She glared at Gram. This was a trick, a rotten trick. (4.207-208)
You know you’ve got an unusual 13-year-old girl when you have to bribe her with yarn and club sandwiches to get her to buy a foundation garment. Classic Dicey.
Quote #7
If she was going to insist that Dicey wear a bra, then Dicey wasn’t going to feel sorry at how much money it cost. If Dicey was going to have to go around feeling like a dog with a collar on, Gram could just pay for it, and Dicey wasn’t going to apologize. (4.212)
Ah, the one moment in the book when Dicey's not worried about money. Her bitterness here reminds us of the bitterness Gram showed when she had to go pick up the welfare check. But hey, a lot of growing up and being mature is learning how to swallow your pride and just do what you gotta do.
Quote #8
Gram went into a girls’ section, where the mannequins were of teenagers wearing slacks or party dresses. They were in the same poses as the mannequins for ladies, which Dicey thought was pretty stupid. The dresses were pretty stupid looking too. (4.214)
Check out what Voigt’s doing here: she’s showing us Dicey’s discomfort over growing up by having her notice that the girls’ mannequins and women’s mannequins are in the same poses. This is what your writing teachers mean by "show, don’t tell." With just that one little detail, we can see Dicey's discomfort with the clothing industry making women out of girls.
Quote #9
The heavy-soft fabric hung close to her body. Her bosom showed a little, and the belt at her waist made her look curved. She looked unfamiliar to herself, the kind of plain that was really fancy. She stood, biting her lip, looking at the girl in the mirror. (4.234)
Dicey sees herself with her choppy tomboy haircut wearing a party dress, and it’s so jarring it’s like she’s looking at a completely different person. We've all had that moment, but for most of us, it's a good one. For Dicey, it's just plain scary.
Quote #10
"That’s what I like about you, Dicey. With everybody else, they want to talk about boys, or clothes, having babies. You know?" Dicey didn’t know. (9.128)
Mina thinks Dicey’s interesting because she wants to talk about something other than the usual girly stuff, but Dicey’s just avoiding subjects she knows nothing about. It’s all about boats and siblings with this one. She sticks to what's comfy.