How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
The Colonel had been an Army brat too, and he loved telling the story of how the Army had lifted his father up from poverty to a good life. (2.14)
In many ways, the Colonel's life is all about the army. There's nothing outside of it for him—even the guy's dad was rescued by the army in his youth. We can see how this has become such a crucial part of his identity by this point in his life. It's practically what his whole life has been about.
Quote #2
"I am a man of the world, full of knowledge and vision, a lover of international cuisine, an appreciator of fine art and good-looking women, and I have the United States Army to thank for this most excellent state of affairs." (2.16)
Not too shabby. Thanks to the army, the Colonel has lived a good life. Check out the way he describes himself as being a lover of food, women, knowledge, and the army. His life revolves around the army, and has been enriched by the army. It's no wonder the guy loves it.
Quote #3
"Yeah, but you're a girl. No father dreams of seeing his daughter playing in the NFL. Maybe you should try out for cheerleading." (3.14)
There's a different set of expectations and standard of living based on gender in this book. Girls can't do certain jobs or activities because they are girls. This hardly seems fair, which Jamie readily points out. What type of life is it for women as compared to men?
Quote #4
The Colonel didn't see the point of it. "You can live your life or you can watch it," he'd say every time one of our expeditions got slowed down because TJ wanted to take a picture of something, a statue, a duck waddling down the middle of the road, a little kid who'd just dropped his ice-cream cone on his lap. (5.4)
It's no surprise that the Colonel has no love for photography; he'd rather be out there acting and doing instead of stopping to take a photo of it. We take his point: Sometimes we're so focused on snapping the right angle that we miss out on living our lives while they are taking place.
Quote #5
"Are you kidding? Who do you think is out there picking up the wounded? If you want to know the truth, I'd rather have gone Field Artillery. But I thought Mom would swallow the Medical Corps easier." (5.19)
TJ lets his little sister in on a secret about the war and what type of life he can expect over in Vietnam. It's so different from anything Jamie has ever experienced that it's hard for her to wrap her head around the idea. So hard, in fact, that she didn't even think about the bodies TJ will be carrying around.
Quote #6
The worst thing was that she was an eleven-year-old girl whose brain was still on the first-grade level. She could read and dress herself and ride her fancy bicycle in wobbly circles around her front yard, but she couldn't think straight at all. It was like her emotions got in the way of her thoughts. (6.2)
Cindy's brain doesn't work the same way as other kids' her age, so it's a very different life for her. We can tell that Cindy understands things about the war and the moon but doesn't quite piece everything together. Her existence is much different than Jamie's.
Quote #7
And then my eyes drifted up to the wounded soldier. There was a lot of blood coming through the bandages wrapped around his chest. Did TJ know whether or not he made it to the hospital alive? Was he alive now? Back in the States? Or back in a combat zone? (7.23)
Jamie wonders about the soldier in the photo and what his life is like now. The fact that she doesn't know troubles her because she wants there to be a happy ending to the story. Yet the life of a soldier isn't always so black and white—he might be home now, but that doesn't mean that he's okay.
Quote #8
"I figured you'd think this was the opportunity of a lifetime for me. An all-expenses-paid trip to Vietnam. Maybe round trip, maybe not. Go live the life of a real soldier." (10.24)
Hollister jokes around with Jamie when he gets word that he'll be shipping out to Vietnam soon. The whole time Jamie plays cards with Hollister, she's been thinking about the game. He, on the other hand, also has to wrestle with the idea that he might be heading off to war soon. It finally dawns on Jamie that a soldier's life is a dark and heavy one.
Quote #9
"You hear of men enlisting after their brothers have been killed in war, because they want to have a crack at the enemy. Revenge. I don't know if that's a good reason to enlist or not, but it makes for some pretty motivated soldiers." (13.11)
The Colonel's remarks highlight the fact that life is valued in the army: People sign up to avenge their friends' deaths, according to what he's experienced. At the same time, though, life isn't valued in the army: Soldiers are shipped off to war by the plane-full and many of them don't return.
Quote #10
I discovered that in some of them wispy clouds were sliding by a full moon's eyes, and in others crescent moons stood suspended in the night sky like slivers of light, Venus twinkling beneath them. There were quarter moons and waning gibbous moons, every sort of moon there was, sometimes with stars peeking out from the corner of the frames, sometimes framed by circles of light" (16.6)
As Jamie starts to examine TJ's photos more closely, she gains a deeper appreciation for them. Not just that, she also values life a little more. She starts to look at the details and grooves of the moon, whereas before, she didn't really get TJ's fascination with it. Life is more precious to her now.