How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
From something Dad said, it had dawned on Mary Alice and me that our trip down to Grandma's was meant to be an annual event.
Mary Alice pitched a fit. (2.1-2)
Mary Alice is super sulky about having to spend a week with Grandma instead of hanging out with her best friends, but their father is adamant—they have to spend time with their grandmother now that she's getting on in years.
Quote #2
"I'll be gone tonight and all day tomorrow, and I don't want the milk left out where it'll sour. I won't pay for it. I'm taking my grandkids on a visit to my cousin Leota Shrewsbury." (2.41)
Grandma Dowdel just made up a family member in order to get back at the Cowgill boys for blowing up her mailbox. She doesn't see anything wrong with pretending to be a kindly old granny who's taking her grandkids for a family visit.
Quote #3
"You know yourself, Mrs. Dowdel, boys will be boys. They're high-spirited. They'll settle down in time and all be good Christian men. Their maw and I have set them a good example." (2.107)
The Cowgill boys are probably such nightmares because their parents let them get away with everything, claiming that "boys will be boys." That's some bad parenting right there.
Quote #4
What if he knew his own mother ran illegal fish traps? Brewing home beer was one thing, because the Prohibition law only profited the bootleggers. But we're talking about good sportsmanship here.
I noticed Mary Alice's eyes on me. She was watching me around Grandma's rowing arm, and she was reading my mind. It was then we decided never to tell Dad. (3.57-58)
By the time their third summer with Grandma rolls around, the kids are completely loyal to her—even if she does often do odd (or illegal) things. They decide never to rat on her to their parents.
Quote #5
Grandma waved that away. "Don't give it a thought. You can take my grandson instead," she said. "If he wants to go."
The heavens opened. I thought I heard celestial music. Somehow I was up in the front seat of the plane, buckling myself in with trembling hands. (4.118-119)
Grandma Dowdel may not be the most affectionate woman in the world, but she still wants her grandchildren to have what they want. She even lies and says that she won the pie-baking contest so that Joey can get his first ride on an airplane.
Quote #6
Though Mary Alice was getting a little too leggy to be a child star, Mother said taking tap would give her poise. So Mary Alice was apt to stop cold on a sidewalk and run through a tap routine in her regular sandals. I wasn't going to wait while she did that, so we each acted like the other one wasn't there. (5.5)
When Joey and Mary Alice hit their tweens, they are both totally too cool for each other. After all, it's not very hip to be hanging out with your siblings—it's better to just ignore them.
Quote #7
Grabbing the front of the girl's uniform, she said, "Gimme that fifteen cents, or I'll turn you every way but loose."
The girl hung there in her mother's grasp. Mary Alice sat below them, stunned. In a small voice the girl said, "I need my money." (5.31-32)
Poor Vandalia is stuck in a Mommie Dearest situation with her mother, who won't let her have any money and abuses her. It's no wonder that she wants to get as far away from her family as possible.
Quote #8
Then as if a sudden thought struck her, she nudged me. "And you can give this boy here a two-dollar bill." She nudged Mary Alice. "And fair's fair. Give this girl two dollars too." (6.138)
Maybe it's wrong of Grandma Dowdel to shake down the banker for money, but at least she's doing it for her friends and her grandkids, and not for her own personal gain. She's always got Joey's and Mary Alice's backs.
Quote #9
Then Grandma called out after me that she and Mary Alice were going along for the ride.
And how could I explain to Grandma that learning to drive was kind of a sacred thing, and you don't want your kid sister and your grandma along? (6.144-145)
Learning how to drive is a big moment in Joey's life, and he doesn't necessarily want his grandmother and sister to be there since it makes him feel like a kid. Still, he loves them enough to let them come along for the ride.
Quote #10
She blinked in surprise at the green eyes blinking back. "For heaven's sake," she said. "It's the kitten. Poor little thing. It took her three days to find her way back from Uncle Grady's to the cobhouse. Grandma must have stuck her in the hamper, meaning me to have her. What a surprise." (7.205)
Grandma isn't overly emotional, and she doesn't weep or tell the kids that she'll miss them like crazy when they leave. But she does sneak a little kitten into their picnic basket as a token of her love… and so they'll remember her.