How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
The arrow stuck straight up from Jinn's chest; the gray feathers of the fletching danced just a little with the movement of the air. (3.9)
Jinn—Acton's dog—dies and he's completely abandoned. For the most part, we see how people react to Cam after they learn of their loved one's deaths, but for Acton, we actually live through the moment he's abandoned with him. We're not going to sugar coat it: it's rough.
Quote #2
All his, because Mam was dead with his birth, and Da was never coming back. And though he had lain there on that bed, feeling as if he were dying inside for wanting Da, he had not wept for him either. (3.102)
Acton's all alone in the world, and there's nothing he can do about it. As much as the story focuses on what it was like for Cam out in the war, it also shows us what happens to those left behind—and sometimes being the only one left is just as hard as fighting.
Quote #3
"Everyone knows you do not like to be in that house on your own. Come with me— we are both alone— we can learn one another, we can rub along. Surely?" (3.124)
When Corban Farmer invites Acton into his home, it's for him as much as it is for Acton. Being alone is scary and sad, so the two of them find love (or at least comfort) in a hopeless place.
Quote #4
Da and Cam fought, and it was a thing too big for tears. Pin heard Cam stamp outside, slamming the door against the jamb, and listened to his steps crossing the yard: hard, angry. After a pause the jingle of the harness sounded, and the clop of the gray's hooves, fading. (6.1)
The fading hoof beats punctuate the empty feeling Pin feels once Cam is gone. At first, she's mad at him, then at herself, until eventually she figures out how to forgive him. The truth is that it's sad when your family leaves you, and Pin knows this first hand.
Quote #5
He did not say, waste time. Roaming the unkempt parts of the forest with no other purpose than to out walk your own thinking, that is surely a waste of time. He did not say, run rather than come face-to-face with any of the villagers, people you've known all your life, no wondering they think you soft in the mind. He did not say, don't fit. But Ban knew all this without hearing it. Thought about it, as he wandered aimless about the fringes of the village. (9.5)
Ban's dad chides him about Cam's influence on him, and we get that this isn't as much about Cam as it is about the fact that Ban has abandoned his duties now. He doesn't care if his family needs him or if he's got work to do—he'd rather hang out with Cam.
Quote #6
"I am not a ghost." Cam laughed. "Though I sometimes feel like one." (10.127)
It's easy to see why Cam feels like a ghost—he's been abandoned by everyone around him, and no one is in his corner, defending him anymore.
Quote #7
If I'd stayed there, slave to the seasons, my horizon would never have moved. If I stayed here with you, it would be a good life, but it would be like Kayforl. (10.163)
When Cam tells Diido that he can't stay away from home, we're not sure what to think. Does he regret abandoning his family, or is he just repeating his same pattern by ditching Diido too?
Quote #8
He was a handful of paces along the path when he glanced back over his shoulder. Diido stood just as he had left her, all cross and crossed upon herself. Cam found himself walking back to her, taking her pointy little chin in his hand. He bent his head. His thumb brushed her cheek; her lips. He paused, lifted his gaze to hers. (15.112)
Now that Cam's gotten closer to Diido, he wants to protect her, and can't leave her with Tseri any longer. It's interesting that he feels more of an attachment to Diido than his own family—perhaps this is because she's more accepting, or maybe because they're both outsiders.
Quote #9
I am tall and grown now (Pin laughed) and I stay away because I no longer know how to come home. When I figure it out, then expect me! You could not do better than Acton Mansto. Of course I think of you all, all the time. (16.144)
Cam's letter to Pin shares somewhat of an apology about not being there, though it's not the best apology we've ever heard. Cam seems to feel bad about ditching his family, though.
Quote #10
"He said… " Pin tried to find words that gave voice to what Cam had said underneath the words he had written. "He said he does come home. Not yet, but he does come." (16.170)
In the end Cam promises to come back to the people and the life that he abandoned. Pin is excited by this, but not everyone in the family shares her emotions. How would you react if you were in her shoes?