One Came Home Strength and Skill Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #1

On Friday, Grandfather Bolte handed me the newly cleaned Springfield. "That's a good rifle. You, Georgie, have got the touch for it. You're as good a shot as I've ever seen." (5.15)

Aw, this makes us sniffle a little. Grandfather Bolte not only recognizes Georgie, but he gives her a vote of confidence in her skills.

Quote #2

Most people shoot pigeons with a shotgun—No. 8 pellets. A single cartridge of pigeon shot is filled with hundreds of tiny balls. Those pellets spray outward, so a single shot can garner several birds. But I wasn't after a pigeon pie; I wanted to show skill at shooting. Grandfather Bolte and I were keeping track of what I shot with the ammunition I used, and to shoot a bird with a single bullet is difficult—even a bird as large as the big male in front of me. I estimated that bird at a full seventeen inches head to tail. He'll do fine, I thought. (6.43)

Now we know what to do if we ever want pigeon pie: Find Georgie to get us some pigeons. What is the point of Georgie's killing this bird? Do we ever find out what happens to it? How does her killing solely for sport affect how you view Georgie's character?

Quote #3

To test my cleaning job, I loaded a cartridge into the Springfield and aimed at a twig approximately one hundred yards away. I fired. The twig shattered.

"Nice shot," said Billy.

"I never miss," I said. (10.93-95)

Does Georgie ever miss? She talks a big game, that's for sure, and we see her make every shot she needs to. Then again, though, she's the one telling us the story…