Quote 1
"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 2
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 3
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 4
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.
Quote 5
Grandma turned to the other rocker. "Can I borrow Uncle Grady for the day on Saturday, Aunt Mae?" she howled.
"You sure can, honey," Aunt Mae said. "In fact, you can keep him!" She'd heard every word and grinned broadly. (7.136-137)
Growing up in a small town means that Grandma knows just about everyone and has long-established friendships with them. She even knows all the old people who haven't left their own homes in decades.
Quote 6
"Lift that wire so I can skin under," Grandma said.
The lowest wire was pretty close to the ground. But Grandma was already flat on her back in the weeds. She'd pushed the cheese through. Now she began to work her shoulders to inch herself under. (3.30-31)
Grandma Dowdel isn't the kind of old lady who's afraid to get dirty or break the rules. In fact, she shows a ridiculous amount of determination when it comes to feeding Aunt Puss every week, and she goes so far as to trespass on private property and steal the sheriff's boat.
Quote 7
"Do that," Grandma said. "And one more thing. You give Effie Wilcox back her house, free and clear. It wasn't worth nothing anyway—apart from its historical value."
"Mrs. Dowdel, that's not business," the banker said. "That's blackmail."
"What's the difference?" Grandma said. (6.130-132)
Even the banker can't tell Grandma what she can or cannot do. In fact, she straight up blackmails Mr. Weidenbach into giving Effie Wilcox her house back…and doesn't act scared of him at all.
Quote 8
A rounded figure with a head cocked like a bird filled the screen door. It was Mrs. L.J. Weidenbach, the banker's wife.
Grandma looked up from her breakfast, scrapple and corn syrup with sides of bacon. "Only ten after six," Grandma muttered, "and she's already girdled and gallivantin'." (7.59-60)
Grandma is stubborn as a mule, and she refuses to give in to Mrs. Weidenbach's plans for her. She will not be one of the helpers at the Centennial Celebration, and she won't give the Weidenbachs the satisfaction of sweeping all the awards, either.
Quote 9
Grandma's sleeves were already turned back, or she'd be turning them back now. She pointed at me. "Scoot uptown and bring me a twenty-five-pound sack of sugar. Tell them to stick it on my bill. After that I want every gooseberry off them bushes out back." She turned on Mary Alice. "And you're going to learn a thing or two about pie crust." (4.39)
If Grandma Dowdel is going to enter the pie competition, then she's going to make sure that she wins. She's going to be baking pies up until the very last minute so that she gets the recipe just right.
Quote 10
"The best home-baker in the state of Illinois," Grandma said. "Him and me come up together out in the country, so I know."
Mrs. Weidenbach quaked. Even Mary Alice looked concerned.
"I'm a goner," said Grandma. (4.71-73)
The fact that Grandma knows her competitor makes the whole thing even more nerve-wracking. She knows that Mr. Pennypacker isn't some amateur baker. He's really good at what he does.
Quote 11
"You want me to swab out toilets while you run your old daddy for Oldest Settler and your nephew for public speaker. Or did my ears deceive me?" (7.73)
As soon as Mrs. Weidenbach asks Grandma Dowdel to clean up at the Centennial Celebration, she gets up in arms. She's not going to let this snooty woman and her family take all the prizes.
Quote 12
After a moment of stunned silence the crowd was on its feet. They were getting up on their benches and clapping over their heads in applause like summer thunder.
Grandma stood. Patting her back hair in a satisfied way, she said, "We don't need to stay to the end." (7.165-166)
When Mary Alice finishes her dance at the talent show, it's obvious from the thunderous applause that she's won. There's no doubt that she's taking home first place…and Grandma Dowdel is pleased as pie.
Quote 13
"I'm a blue ribbon winner," Grandma announced, "here for my ride."
"Wha—" Mrs. Weidenbach said.
My brain went dead. (4.100-102)
Everyone is completely flabbergasted when Grandma Dowdel approaches the pilot and demands a free ride on the airplane. She's so fearless and convincing when she lies.
Quote 14
"I heard you tell your brother that Vandalia Eubanks was a puppy. I can hear all over the house. I got ears on me like an Indian scout. And I don't sleep." (5.174)
The whole time that Mary Alice has Vandalia hidden in their house, Grandma Dowdel knows what's going on. She just pretends to believe Mary Alice's lies because she wants to help out Vandalia, too.
Quote 15
"Ah," Grandma said. "Let me see if I heard right. At my time in life, my hearing isn't what it was."
Mary Alice and I stared at each other. Of all her whoppers, this was Grandma's crowning achievement. She had ears on her like an Indian scout. (7.71-72)
When Grandma tells Mrs. Weidenbach that she didn't hear her, the kids both know that this is the biggest lie ever. Grandma isn't a little old lady who's losing her hearing; she's a force to be reckoned with—and she hears everything that's going on around her.
Quote 16
"It's the Centennial Celebration," Grandma said. "We're all going back to the old days and the old ways for a week."
"Grandma," I said, "you never gave up any of the old ways." (7.17-18)
The idea of going back to the "old ways" for a week is laughable because Grandma Dowdel already lives as though they're in the midst of the "old days." Still, the kids play along with the whole charade.
Quote 17
"He was just an old reprobate who lived poor and died broke," Grandma said. "Nobody went near him because he smelled like a polecat. He lived in a chicken coop, and now they'll have to burn it down." (1.15)
When the kids go to stay with Grandma, they're exposed to a completely different way of life—one that's slower and also involves being surrounded by a great deal of poverty. It's eye-opening and helps to round out their perspective on the world.
Quote 18
"Vampires? No. The only bloodsuckers is the banks." Grandma stroked her chins. "Movies is all pretend. They're made in California, you know. But they prove a point. Make something seem real, and people will believe it. The public will swallow anything." (6.39)
Grandma Dowdel doesn't see vampires as monsters, but she does see banks as the real bloodsuckers. They're the ones who are taking away people's livelihoods, and she won't stand for that.
Quote 19
Grandma stepped back and clutched her throat, showing shock. "Don't tell me the bank's failed. Banks is failing all over. Had I better draw out my funds? Is there still time?"
"No, ma'am, the bank's still in business." Otis looked down at his boots. "Your seventeen dollars is safe." (6.108-109)
When Grandma Dowdel is summoned to come meet with Mr. Weidenbach, she demands to know if that bank has failed. She only has $17 in her account, but that's still money that she'd like to hang on to.
Quote 20
"What do you want to learn to drive for anyway?" she said. "Don't you go around Chicago in taxicabs and trolleys?"
I couldn't explain it to Grandma. I was getting too old to be a boy, and driving meant you were a man. Something like that. (6.46-47)
Grandma Dowdel just doesn't understand that learning to drive isn't a practical choice for Joey—it's a rite of passage. By learning to drive, he feels that he'll be more of a man than a boy.