Chapters 4, 5 and 6 Summary

Dolores' mother, Bernice, is released from the hospital and there's a tentative peace between Dolores and Bernice, as Grandma Holland disapproves of her daughter's bad habits—including smoking. She's unsuccessful at finding a job but walks each evening. Dolores never goes with her mother and says her return is always a surprise—that she's looking for signs of "weird" and is braced for the news that Bernice has gone back to the mental hospital. Meanwhile, Dolores is third in the class with regard to grades and always among the last three chosen for teams of any kind. It's in that climate that Bernice shares some of her thoughts—that Grandma Holland had helped make her less self-assured and that she'd hated the time Tony spent with Mrs. Masicotte. Dolores takes a chance, reaches over for her mother's cigarette...