Most of the time, Billy wants to grow up. Pronto. And for him growing up is about not acting like a little kid anymore. In fact, one of Billy's biggest worries is that folks will think he's acting like a baby. So when Emma makes fun of him for being immature, it seriously gets him down, and when he feels scared and childish, our main man would rather hide this than share it.
But Billy's not the only one who wants to grow up in The Year of Billy Miller, and his little sis is raring to become a big kid as fast as she can. The challenge for these two, then, is figuring out how they can start acting more grownup without actually jumping ahead in time.
Questions About Coming of Age
- How do the characters define growing up? Do they all agree on the same definition, or do different characters think of growing up in distinct ways? How so?
- Is growing up a positive experience or a negative one? And what makes it so good or so bad?
- Are there any characters that don't come of age at all? What holds these characters back?
- What motivates Billy to grow up? Is there anything motivating him to stay the same?
Chew on This
Coming of age is inevitable. Billy would have grown up no matter what, so it's no big deal.
Coming of age is a choice, and for Billy, growing up means making decisions that are more mature.