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“Simon Glass was easy to hate. I never knew exactly why, there was too much to pick from. I guess, really, we each hated him for a different reason, but we didn’t realize it until the day we killed him.”
This is the opening line of the novel, and it sets up the premise of things to come; that is, the knowledge that Simon Glass will die in the end. In this way, the overall story is about finding out how and why Simon Glass was murdered.
“Looks-wise, Rob wasn’t lacking, but that wasn’t the whole story. He wore confidence like the rest of us wore favorite sweatshirts. Magnetism like Rob’s can’t be earned. When he walked into a room, there was a jolt and all eyes turned his way.”
This description of Rob reveals why he is continually able to get his way, whether with his peers or his teachers. Throughout the novel, everyone Rob encounters ends up caving to his will, except for Simon.
“Lance leaned over and grabbed the exposed elastic band of Glass’s underwear. He stretched it out, then released. The band snapped against Simon’s crack just as the bell shrieked. As the crowd moved on, one or two of them took a swipe at Simon’s pens, scattering them to the far end of the Commons. Lance picked up the calculator’s plastic back and flipped it with a backhanded Frisbee toss into a garbage can.”
This moment illustrates Lance’s bullying while also revealing that in the beginning of the novel, Simon is constantly picked on because he’s considered the most unpopular guy at B’Vale. This is also an important moment because it’s what makes Rob come up with his plan to turn things upside down, by making Lance the least popular and Simon the most popular.
“Even when I allowed myself a fleeting suspicion that Rob was wrong, he made so much sense that I had to follow his lead. We all followed. He made it easy.”
This quote comes from Young and occurs right after Rob tries to convince him that it wasn’t wrong to get the substitute teacher in trouble. This moment also reveals why Rob was ultimately able to lead Young astray so often.
“I won trophies, too. Fullback. All District. Not good enough for a scholarship. Ended up pumpin’ gas for a livin’. He will too. Just like his old man. Big and stupid.”
This quote comes from Coop’s dad and demonstrates the heart of their relationship. From this quote, it’s clear to see that Coop’s dad doesn’t support his son, nor take his athletic pursuits seriously. This moment also explains Coop’s biggest fear: that he will turn out just like his father.
“Simon, I get off on a challenge. I get pissed when the herd pushes one of the weak out. I don’t want them to say who stays and who gets shit on. I want to even up the score.”
This quote comes from Rob, who is telling Simon why he wants to help make him popular, and reveals Rob’s controlling nature. Ever since he arrived at B’Vale, it’s clear that Rob has had it out for Lance. By making Simon popular, it’s Rob’s way of ultimately beating out Lance for the top social position, since Lance has previously always been popular and relied on abusing Simon to achieve his popularity.
“Rob took off toward the back of the gym. Looking around, he pulled a key from his pocket and unlocked a door at the end of a small, dark corridor between the gym and the swimming pool. The equipment room. ‘Step into my office.’ He grinned as he ushered us in. ‘I somehow found myself in possession of a master key.’”
This describes Rob’s office, which is also the athletic equipment room. This is where the group of friends meet, and it’s also where Simon is murdered at the end of the novel. However, of particular significance here is the fact that Rob is in control of this room and that it’s a secret, since being controlling and secretive are major components of Rob’s character.
“Rob had circumvented the routine. He gave us a place and a plan. We were random stars, and he made us a constellation.”
This quote comes from Young, and it describes how easily Rob fit into the friend group when they first met him. This description also reveals how Young found meaning as Rob’s lackey. Before Rob came along, the friend group used to float around aimlessly. However, after Rob joined the group, he gave them direction by telling them where to go and what to do.
“I snagged the frog mid-leap and returned it to Rob. His chiseled features clouded. He snatched the frog and squeezed until the frog’s eyes goggled. He placed his index finger against the pad of his thumb and flicked it, striking the frog on its puffed throat. It made a dull, wet smack. ‘I’ll teach you to try and get away.’”
This description of Rob comes from Young, and it occurs during Advanced Bio. Each person in the class receives a live frog that needs to be killed and then dissected. The students are supposed to put the frog inside a jar with a cotton ball drenched in chloroform, to humanely kill the frog. However, Rob maliciously tortures his frog before killing it, revealing a dark, violent side that Young has never seen before.
“I kept the old stuff, in case you wanted it. But I divided the notebook into sections for each subject, and subdivided it into notes, assignments, and completed work. And there’s a clip-in dictionary in back and a plastic pouch for note cards, you know, for you research paper.”
This quote comes from Simon, who is describing how he has renovated Coop’s old notebook to help him be more organized. Young feels like Simon is trying to take his place with Coop. Before Simon, Young had always helped Coop pass his English classes by letting Coop copy his notes. However, once Simon is in the picture, Simon begins to help Coop genuinely learn, instead of just copying notes. Simon ends up tutoring Coop, and as they spend more time together, Young feels increasingly pushed out.
“I closed the door to my room with care. No slamming doors in this house. My head strummed and my hands fisted and opened, fisted and opened. I paced the room trying to calm down, trying not to scream, trying not to curse my father at the top of my lungs, trying not to cry. I grabbed the fat decorator pillow at the end of my bed and planted my fist deep. The pillow was my father’s face, and I smashed his mouth while he told me what to do and how to do it. I pounded the pillow until I cooled out enough to write. A new story with a new ending might help me sleep.”
This quote comes from Young, and happens right after his father tells him that he must drop out of Creative Writing and take Advanced Bio instead. Important to note is the way in which Young handles his anger: rather than telling his father why taking a writing class is important to him, Young says yes to his father’s face and then reacts violently behind closed doors. This is similar to the way he reacts to his peers; rather than standing up to Rob or Simon and speaking his mind, he does what he is told, despite not wanting to. This moment is also important because it reveals why writing is important to Young: it helps him deal with the emotions that he can’t express verbally.
“My father never read my short stories. Coop and Bob had both asked, but their interest was more a matter of friendship than literature. I dodged them. But I gave Rob one of my stories the first time he asked.”
Theselines come from Young and reveal the connection he feels to Rob. Their shared love of good literature was what first attracted Young to Rob, and this moment demonstrates his trust in Rob.
“There was no revulsion on Rob’s face. Nor pity. ‘You know, when you were a kid your father undressed you and put you in your pajamas? He sat on your bed. If you had a bad dream you might have slept with him. You sat on his lap while he read picture books.’ I nodded. My dad was disappointed in me but he hadn’t been a monster. He’d done all those things. ‘So,’ Rob continued, ‘how does a kid know when that stuff turns into something…not right?’”
This moment describes Rob’s reaction to reading Young’s story about a boy who was sexually molested by his camp counselor. Rob quickly puts it together that the story is about Young’s real-life experiences, and Rob reassures him that it wasn’t his fault. This moment is of special importance, however, because Rob was sexually molested by his own father for years. While Rob doesn’t ever reveal this secret, unbeknownst to Young, Rob’s comforting words are autobiographical of his own traumatic experience.
“I wondered if Rob shared secrets with Bob and Coop. Had he found and patched a hole in them as he had in me? He had taken the thing that terrified me and chased it under a rock where it belonged. He was my hero, my savior. My friend.”
Here, Young reflects on the moment he shared his story and secret with Rob. It’s presumed that Rob is the only person Young has ever told his secret to, and from this description, it’s clear to see that it was a cathartic experience for Young. Before sharing his story with Rob, Young had always assumed what happened with the camp counselor was his fault, and that he “let” it happen. However, after Rob reassures him that it wasn’t his fault, Young seems to be able to let the trauma go. This explains why Young is so trusting of Rob and willing to go along with his schemes, and why, in the end, he doesn’t stop Rob from beating Simon: Young feels like he owes Rob too much.
“When Mr. Blevins assigned a persuasive speech, Ronna’s hand shot up. She told him that a person couldn’t be persuaded, only given permission. Blevins countered with the persuasive orations of Adolf Hitler. Ronna argued that Hitler didn’t persuade anyone, he simply made it acceptable to unleash the evil already inside. She stunned me. My journal entries became full of her. She entered the world of my short stories.”
Here, Young is describing the first time he began to be attracted to Ronna. While Young often expresses his physical attraction to Ronna, this moment reveals that he was first attracted to her bold intelligence. This moment is also important because Ronna’s theory of Hitler’s ability to give permission, rather than persuade, mirrors Rob’s ability to get people to do the wrong things. According to Ronna’s idea, the people enacting Hitler’s ideas were just as evil as Hitler. The same could be said for everyone who did what Rob wanted. Rob may have been the evil mastermind, but ultimately he was just giving people permission to do what they secretly wanted to.
“This is not a bad person. This is a person who made bad choices. Do I think he’ll make those kinds of choices again? No. Do I think he’s a danger to society? No. Do I think he has shown remorse? Let me put it this way. More than one boy died that day.”
This quote comes from Prison Chaplain Joseph Guzman, and he’s explaining why he thinks Young should receive parole. Guzman argues that Young isn’t a bad person, but throughout the novel, it’s unclear whether Young is a moral character. Young never stands up for what is right, but instead consistently goes along with whatever he is told. Even though he didn’t kill Simon, he didn’t stop it, either. Also, he never mentions feeling bad about Simon’s death, but does seem to still show remorse for Rob.
“I mentally shot Glass the bird. It pissed me off whenever he showed some spine.”
Throughout the novel, Young feels like Simon is taking his place in the group. However, this moment reveals that the real reason Young doesn’t like Simon is because Simon is able to do what Young can’t: stand up for himself.
“I wondered for the hundredth time why this was so necessary to Rob. The only thing I could find was that he needed to control the way I needed approval.”
Young thinks this during the Homecoming Dance, after Rob interrupts his dance with Ronna. Rob wants Young to make sure that enough pictures are taken of Simon, which demonstrates Rob’s obsession with his plan to make Simon popular. This moment is of importance because this is the first time Young and Ronna are physically close, and it’s clear that Young is enjoying his time with Ronna. However, Rob doesn’t mind interrupting the intimacy for his own gain, which reveals his selfishness.
“Ronna told me this was all about fathers. Young’s grandfather was a heart surgeon of some renown, but his father was a small town G.P. I think he saw his own shortcomings in Young. Bob’s father wanted an athlete, but Bob was the scaredest kid I’d ever seen. I didn’t know Rob’s dad but, of course, we all heard the story later.”
This is the opening quote from Chapter 15, and comes from John Ronald Perry, Ronna’s dad. Five years after Simon’s murder, John is reflecting on the common flaw that each of the boys shared. Although John doesn’t mention it, even Coop had issues with his father. The fact that each boy had problems with their fathers could explain why they were so quick to obey Rob. Rob, unlike each of them, took the lead and demanded that they obey. When they did obey, they received praise from Rob. In this way, it could be said that Rob was like the father figure they never had, and his fatherly influence is behind their desire to please him at all costs.
“She closed the blinds and stood there. I couldn’t decide if she was nervous or waiting for me to make the move. I put one hand on each side of her face and kissed her. She slid her hands under my shirt; her lips moved against my ear. ‘I want to show you that you’re special.’ And she did.”
This describes the first time Young and Ronna have sex. Important to note is Ronna’s professed desire to please Young, yet Young doesn’t reciprocate the sentiment. Throughout the novel Young says that he is attracted to Ronna and even loves her, but when Rob wants him to dump her, Young is quick to do so. In this way, Young’s true thoughts are difficult to discern. If he really loved Ronna, then his willingness to let her go shows that his devotion to Rob was deeper than his love for Ronna.
“Instead of making Rob more, doesn’t it just make all of us…less?”
Ronna says this to Young in reference to the idea that instead of Rob’s plan giving him a sense of control, it’s making everyone involved look inferior to Rob. While Young is adamant that Rob needs this plan to feel in control, Ronna is offering the idea that maybe Rob’s plan is actually a malicious attempt to make everyone around him look stupid. In this way, Ronna is saying that Rob isn’t a true friend, in the way Young believes he is.
“I’ve learned a lot. Finally gotten smart in my old age or something. Young and I both made Rob into a substitute father. We couldn’t deal with the ones we were given. And Rob made us feel like successful sons. Sons a father is proud of. Who wouldn’t do most anything for that? Young just did more than I did.”
This is part of the opening quote from Chapter 18, which comes from Coop. Here, he’s admitting both he and Young looked at Rob like a father figure and that this is part of the justification for why they continually went along with Rob’s plan. Coop is the only character who reflects on why Simon’s murder happened. Rob disappeared afterwards, Bob refuses to speak about it, and Young never mentions anything about Simon, despite being in jail for his murder.
“Glass is getting as bad as Rob about keeping secrets.”
This quote comes from Coop and describes Simon’s transition from least to most popular. When Simon was being picked on, he was shy and introverted, but now that he’s popular, he acts more and more like Rob. In this way, Simon and Rob can be viewed as parallel characters, in that they both act secretively and for their own gain. This is ultimately why Rob reacts so violently to Simon. While the other characters give in to Rob’s will, Simon is the only person to stand up to Rob.
“Why did I do what Rob asked me to about Ronna? That’s always the first question. If I had never gone to that library and learned what I did, then Rob could never have talked me into it. But once I knew Rob’s secret and I knew, knew what it does to a person—then I needed to patch a hole in him like he’d done for me. And I didn’t think it would be permanent with [Ronna] and me. I thought I could have it all back.”
This is the opening quote from Chapter 19, and it comes from Young. Here, he’s explaining why he gave Ronna up for Rob. Once Young found out that Rob was sexually molested just like he was, he feels an unspeakable bond with Rob. But more than that, Young feels like Rob helped him heal from his trauma, and he wanted to do the same for him. In this way, the trauma that both teens shared is the unspoken catalyst for their friendship and the reason for Young’s devotion.
“Late that night, I sat in my room flipping the channels on the television, the bright-colored images a kaleidoscope flickering against my unseeing eyes. I thought about Rob and understood why he had to control all of us. A central person in his life had betrayed him. It was the secret we shared, what must have drawn us together.”
Young has just found out that Rob’s dad sexually molested him for many years, and Young is linking this trauma to Rob’s need for control. Throughout the rest of the novel, Young stands by the idea that Rob’s plan for Simon has to do with his past sexual trauma, but this only ever remains Young’s theory. That is, Rob never reveals his secret, thoughts, or psyche to any of his friends, so it’s impossible to know exactly why Rob needed control over Simon and the others.