They convinced me that Liberia's sweetness was incomparable -- more than a ripe mango's strings having between my teeth after sucking the juice of very sticky bite, the Ol' Ma's milk candy that melted on my tongue, sugar bread, even America -- none a match for the taste then, of my country.
-- Wayétu 'Tutu' Moore (Chapter 1)

Importance: This quote demonstrates Moore's unique writing style, in which lyrical phrasing such as an adult would use is paired with the kind of imagery a child would perceive and understand. Thus, her authorial voice is heard in the composition of her sentences even as her young narrator's worldview is preserved, creating a complex narrative experience.

They could not hear it, but it was there, whistling in the distance, just as I imagined from Ol' Ma's stories. Settled winds. They had come. A prince entered that distant forest to kill Hawa Undu. The war had just begun.
-- Wayétu 'Tutu' Moore (Chapter 2)

Importance: This passage...