How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
Here's the thing. I know it sounds stupid, and I'm not this sort of person usually, honest. I mean, I don't believe in, you know, ghosts or reincarnation or any weird stuff at all. But this, it was just something that started happening, and… Anyway. I'll just say it, and you can think what you want. I talk to Tony Hawk, and Tony Hawk talks back. (1.7)
Right away, Sam gives us the skinny on his religious beliefs. We'd like to point out that he is interested in the supernatural and religion, even if he doesn't know which one yet. The fact that he tells us his beliefs upfront shows us that he's in a stage of life where he's considering what he wants to believe.
Quote #2
Does this sound mad to you? It probably does, but I don't care, really. Who doesn't talk to someone in their heads? Who doesn't talk to God, or a pet, or someone they love who has died, or maybe just to themselves? (1.24)
Here it is, Shmoopers, the reason Sam talks to Tony Hawk. To him, it's almost like a religion. No, he doesn't believe Tony is a god, but he kind of treats him that way. He thinks Tony can transport him through time and give him advice when he needs it. Hmm… sounds kind of like prayer.
Quote #3
"If it's OK, I'll never skate again." As if it had anything to do with skating. I offered never to watch TV again, and never to go out again, and never to eat McDonald's again. Sex never came up, because I already knew I was never going to have sex again, so that didn't seem like a deal God would be interested in. (5.29)
Trying to make a deal with God, Sam starts promising stuff if in exchange for Alicia not being pregnant. Even though Sam isn't sure he even believes in God, he starts bargaining when things go south. Slam asks us to think about the ways people use religion.
Quote #4
I decided to take the poster down whether Alicia was pregnant or not. It was time to move on. If he was so great, how come he couldn't help me? I'd been treating him like a god, but he wasn't a god. He was nothing. Just a skater. (5.96)
Indeed, he has. Sam knows he thinks of Tony Hawk as a god, but that doesn't stop him from treating his idol this way even after this epiphany. He wants to convince himself that Tony means nothing to him, but we know that's not true. He's just upset that Tony can't help him more.
Quote #5
I'm pretty sure I didn't dream them up, but I couldn't swear that on Tony Hawk's book, which is my bible. So we're about to come to one of these parts now, and all I can do is tell it straight. You'll have to make your own minds up. (6.1)
If his bible is Tony Hawk's book, and his god is the skater himself, is his religion Tony Hawkism? Sam's search for meaning in everything Tony Hawk shows us that he's looking for answers out there about his future and the larger meaning of life. It just so happens that he finds answers in a skater instead of a deity.
Quote #6
If Tony Hawk let me be eleven again, I wouldn't mess it up a second time. I'd become a Christian or something, one of those people who never do anything. I used to think they were mad, but they're not, are they? (6.108)
We're not sure we believe Sam when he claims he'd go all religious on us. In fact, we think he's just using his bartering skills again. This time, he's promising he won't screw up if he gets a second shot. The trouble is, that's not how it works—we can't jump back and forth every time we make a mistake until our lives are perfect.
Quote #7
So I walked down the road wondering who was in trouble, or hoping that nothing bad had happened to Mum, or praying that no burglars had come into the house overnight and taken our DVD player. Stupid? Stupid. (8.27)
Again Sam turns to prayer when he's in trouble. This time, he's decided to come back from Hastings after running away, and he expects everything to be normal when he gets home. Wrong again. It seems like every time he dials up a prayer, it just means he's admitting he's screwed up.
Quote #8
"I wondered where you'd been getting this stuff from," she said. "Listen. The people who post things on the Internet about abortions, they're all evangelical Christians, and—"
"Doesn't matter what they are, does it? Facts are facts," said Alicia. (9.299-300)
Alicia's mom openly mocks evangelical Christians when she's trying to convince her daughter to consider abortion. Again the book asks us to think about the place of religion in our lives. To some people, it governs personal decisions, but to others, it's not necessary.
Quote #9
It was like a horror movie, or something out of some Bible. Two angels, one good and one bad, fighting over the soul of a tiny baby. My mum was the good angel, and I'm not just saying that because she was my mum. (14.119)
When Sam's mom and Andrea are fighting over the baby's last name, Sam pictures a Biblical death match. Pretty much anytime something bad happens, he turns to religious imagery—it's like his ideas of the Bible and prayer are only reserved for the worst of times.
Quote #10
I think I can remember Ms. Miller telling us in Religious Studies once that some people believe you have to live your life over and over again, like a level on a computer game, until you get it right. Well, whatever religion that is, I think I might believe in it. I might actually be a Hindu or a Buddhist or something, without really knowing it. (19.23)
We wouldn't exactly call this a conversion, but we do think it's worth thinking about. Sam appreciates the idea of getting a do-over and likes religions that believe in that possibility. So there's just one question: Does Sam believe this actually happens or does he just want to believe it so he can do stuff right the next time around?