He’s dousing her sweater with his tears and runny snot, and Kathy doesn’t flinch. He hugs her with his left arm, pressing her into him, and she responds, hugging him back, and their contact creates a human connection that feels as vital to him as the air he can still breathe.
-- Narrator (chapter 7)

Importance: This passage does two things: first, it is a tribute to the selfless compassion of people who make it their career to care for others. Kathy is here a representative of all the caregivers and health workers who go above and beyond their job descriptions to offer him emotional care, not just the physical needs of his body. Second, it is an affirmation of the novel’s theme that genuine connection is imperative, but only possible through vulnerability. The gross-out descriptive language of the passage (“runny snot”) shows Richard’s physical humiliation, while his choice to ask...