How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
"Why do you front, Lambert? Why pretend you're not a skank when you know you are?" (1.18)
The same boys who applaud the guy who took a girl's virginity tend to be the ones who harass the girl who lost it. Case in point: Tommy's friends, who have the power to both boost his ego and further destroy hers.
Quote #2
"Deanna Lambert is a complete psycho. Tommy liked her at first […] Then they started going out and she'd be cutting herself, or all cranked on meth, or coming up with crazy ideas like they should bomb the school or whatever." (1A.2)
Deanna's life becomes a straight-up After School Special after she loses it to Tommy. It's easier for the other students at Terra Nova to believe she's a suicidal meth addict than a girl who made a mistake (or—gasp—a girl who just liked sex).
Quote #3
"She kept calling him and calling him and finally he's like, Okay, I'll go out with you but remember I'm seventeen and if you want to be my girlfriend, well, you gotta do stuff. She said, Anything, I'll do anything you want." (1A.3)
The sad thing is that even though Deanna doesn't tell us their conversations were that blatant, this is the version of the rumor that's closest to true. Deanna was willing to do what Tommy wanted to keep him coming around.
Quote #4
For a long time I wanted to be Stacy, that tough and cool and grown-up. I would have killed for that kind of power at school. (2.25)
Stacy's power is the kind that comes from rejecting others before they can reject you. Is that real power? Or is it just the surface kind of power, like the way you can score a boyfriend or at least a night of passion with your sexy hair? There's a big difference between real power and momentary power.
Quote #5
"One of these days you should just look one of them in the eye and say, yeah, that's me, and so what? At my school in San Francisco, no one would even care." (2.68)
Deanna chooses not to tell her own story because she's so full of shame, and she knows nobody would believe her anyway. Tommy got to them first.
Quote #6
"Yeah, well, this is Pacifica. One high school, one grapevine, one feature story: me." (2.69)
Deanna's hatred of herself makes her feel like she doesn't have any options other than staying in Pacifica for the rest of her life, even though San Francisco is so close by.
Quote #7
Him and Deanna, that skanky eighth grader, going at it and she was loving it, you know, and then her dad shows up, and that's him, working in the parts department. (7.37)
Deanna's dad carries the reminder of what Deanna did everywhere he goes, even to his temp jobs. They're both suffering from their inability to stand up for her.
Quote #8
I surfed through the talk shows and pictured my dad on the screen. Today's topic: My Daughter is a Slut. Tommy could go on, too, and tell the story to an international audience. (9.18)
We'd like to encourage Deanna to imagine herself appearing on a talk show instead. Today's topic: How I Survived Slut-Shaming by my Dad. It has a better ring to it, right?
Quote #9
Suddenly Bruce's voice was right in my ear, whispering, "I guess this is a self-serve thing," and he put his hand between my legs from behind. (9.90)
Hey, Bruce—totally not okay way to treat someone. You hear us? The fact that Jason doesn't pummel Bruce right there at the Panda Express makes us both love him and hate him. If he weren't the nicest guy ever, Deanna wouldn't love him—but somebody needs to stick up for her.