They can't see me, and I can't hear them.
-- Narrator (Chapter 1)

Importance: At the outset of the novel, April feels disconnected from other people and isolated in her personal struggles. This quotation exemplifies her lack of connection and belief that she has to dissociate from others in order to protect herself from rejection. After April leaves Little River, she continues to make decisions based on her negative core beliefs and run away from meaningful relationships.

Except for Margo, no one has ever hugged me.
-- Narrator (Chapter 2)

Importance: As an adolescent, the protagonist feels abandoned and lonely. After her mother left, she lived with her father in the motorhome. However, he chose to live with his new girlfriends Irene and support her child instead of taking care of April. While Margo loves the narrator, like her own daughter, April sees her affection as an anomaly. Her other relationships and friendships are punctuated by rejection, judgement, and distance...