Epigraphs are like little appetizers to the great entrée of a story. They illuminate important aspects of the story, and they get us headed in the right direction.
It's difficult in times like these: ideals, dreams and cherished hopes rise within us, only to be crushed by grim reality. It's a wonder I haven't abandoned all my ideals, they seem so absurd and impractical. Yet I cling to them because I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart.
It's utterly impossible for me to build my life on a foundation of chaos, suffering and death. I see the world being slowly transformed into a wilderness, I hear the approaching thunder that, one day, will destroy us too, I feel the suffering of millions. And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty too will end, that peace and tranquility will return once more.
- Anne Frank, in her diary, July 15, 1944
What's up with the epigraph?
When the World Trade Center is attacked on September 11, Wendy's class is in the middle of reading Anne Frank's diary.
This is fitting because The Usual Rules is all about surviving—and building a life—in the midst of great horror and tragedy. The epigraph states that though it's difficult to be optimistic in these times, "[…] when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty too will end, that peace and tranquility will return once more." This is exactly the kind of outlook Wendy has after her world comes crumbling down around her.
Even through the most trying times and most terrible grief, Wendy has hope that the world will get better. She soldiers on against the odds and somehow manages to build up a life and form new relationships even with all that's happened. Her spirit, like Anne Frank's, is resilient.