Ivy Lin was a thief but you would never know it to look at her. Maybe that was the problem. No one ever suspected—and that made her reckless. Her features were so average and nondescript that the brain only needed a split second to develop a complete understanding of her: skinny Asian girl, quiet, overly docile around adults in uniforms.
-- Narrator (Chapter 1)

Importance: These lines open the novel and introduce the main character. This quote is important because it highlights Ivy's peculiar identity which is at odds with her physical appearance.

But of her mother’s moods, of her family’s Chinese ways, of her shoplifting, she kept quiet for now. Knowledge, like money, was foolish to give away for free. You could never get it back.
-- Narrator (Chapter 2)

Importance: After Ivy offers to be lookout for Roux, the two become quick friends and start spending all their time together. This quote is important because...