Just as some cultures have a hundred words for “snow,” there should be a hundred words in our language for all the ways a black boy can lie awake at night.
-- Saeed Jones (chapter 3)

Importance: This quite highlights the fear and vulnerability that Saeed feels at a young age because he is a black boy in America. This quote appears after he learns about the murder of James Byrd Jr., demonstrating the impact that this event had on his young life. This quote, which appears early in the book, underscores the themes of race, power, and vulnerability that will play a significant role in both this book and in Saeed's life. The idea that there are a multitude of reasons why Saeed is lying awake at night demonstrates that he feels vulnerable in many different ways. His reference to the limited vocabulary of the English language on this score suggests that mainstream society is...