Every family has its issues.”
-- Stuart (Anna)

Importance: This quote accurately sums up the underlying message of the novel. In saying this, Stuart hopes to justify his caprices to Anna. What he says ring true not only to her, but to the reader as well. Stuart’s take on familial troubles is one that everyone can resonate with, since nobody chooses the family they are born into. The Adler family certainly has many problems, but Stuart’s words make it clear that they are not alone in this.

It was her experience that boys like him, whose fathers owned hotels on the Boardwalk and not shops north of Arctic Avenue, went away to college and usually to the sorts of schools she and Joseph lambasted.”
-- Esther (Esther)

Importance: This quote makes it clear that Esther does not hate Stuart himself but rather, what he represents. She resents the fact that privileged men of his class are...