How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
What I was thinking about was that I had to get up every morning and dry the clothes I had washed the night before by putting them on the oven door, to have something to wear to high school. How was I going to get the clothes for college? How was I going to get clothes for Kenny so he could stay in school? Mama had said that she'd see to it that Kenny stayed in school if I sent the money for clothes for him. (1.14)
Perry had the grades for college, but what drove him to the army instead? Good 'ol poverty. At home, not only does he not have the money to support himself, but he has to support his family, too. He needs a job that'll let him rake in the dough. And when you're fresh out of high school with no experience, your job pickings are going to be limited.
Quote #2
"When everybody got a bike I didn't get one 'cause there was no way we could get the money for a bike. But anything anybody got in the army, I got. You got a gun, I got a gun. You got boots, I got boots. You eat this lousy-ass chip beef on toast, guess what I eat?"
"Lousy-ass chip beef on toast," I said. (2.24-25)
Peewee likes at least one part of being in the army: it puts everyone on an even playing field, at least more or less. Which kind of gives you an idea of what Peewee's life was like before the army. His standards (chip beef?) are not very high.
Quote #3
"You know what I hope?" Lobel asked. "I hope I get killed over here so he has to fit that s*** between his vodka martinis." (9.84)
Lobel's different from the other guys in his platoon because he doesn't come from a working-class background. For his dad, vodka martinis—which are a step up from a can of Budweiser, as far as your adult beverages are concerned—are the norm. Kind of evokes the high life. But here's a secret: that doesn't necessarily mean a happy life. Deep, huh?