Quote 4
"Why don't you quit talking in dreams and tell me what you really want to do with your life, I said. "Make it simple."
"I want to go to Stanford and study architecture."
"Wow, that's cool," I said. "But why architecture?"
"Because I want to build something beautiful. Because I want to be remembered."
And I couldn't make fun of her for that dream. It was my dream, too. And Indian boys weren't supposed to dream like that. And white girls from small towns weren't supposed to dream big, either. (15.100-15.104)
Though they come from very different worlds, Penelope and Arnold are both dreamers. They long to leave their homes and make a better life for themselves. Why does Penelope see Reardan in the same way that Arnold sees Wellpinit?
Quote 5
"I can do it," I said to Coach, to my teammates, to the world.
"You can do it," Coach said.
"I can do it."
"You can do it."
"I can do it."
Do you understand how amazing it is to hear that from an adult? Do you know how amazing it is to hear that from anybody? It's one of the simplest sentences in the world, just four words, but they're the four hugest words in the world when they're put together.
You can do it.
I can do it.
Let's do it. (25.135-25.143)
The four most powerful words in the world, Arnold tells, are "You can do it." Through believing in himself – and having someone else believe in him – Arnold is able to accomplish great things.
Quote 6
"A metaphorical boner!" I shouted. "What the heck is a metaphorical boner?"
Gordy laughed.
"When I say boner, I really mean joy," he said.
"Then why didn't you say joy? You didn't have to say boner. Whenever I think about boners, I get confused."
"Boner is funnier. And more joyful."
Gordy and I laughed.
He was an extremely weird dude. But he was the smartest person I'd ever known. He would always be the smartest person I'd ever known. (12.211-12.217)
One of the most important things that Arnold learns from Gordy is that learning and knowledge and reading and books should bring you a whole big bunch of joy. So much joy, in fact, that the only way that Gordy knows how to describe the feeling is by calling it a "boner." Why is the idea of joy so important for this book?