Chapter 5: Lost

      ·         “I knew my mother was considering sending me away, but I never thought she’d actually do it.  The final straw came one evening when she sat downstairs on the phone listening to my dean from Riverdale explain why they were placing me on academic and disciplinary probation.” (Page 87)

This quote reveals the importance of education because it shows that Wes’ mother could not tolerate Wes’ bad grades and behavior, and knew her son had to shape up as a student and as a person.

      ·         “My grandparents took the money they had in the home in the Bronx, decades of savings and mortgage payments, and gave it to my mother so she could pay for my first year of military school.” (Pages 95-96)

This quote illustrates the importance of education because it shows how Wes’ grandparents were willing to sacrifice thousands of dollars to pay for a strict, scholarly future for Wes.

      ·         “Wes’s nonexistent relationship with his father probably contributed to his seeming indifference about becoming a father himself.” (Page 101)

This quote shows the theme of absent fathers because it explains that since Wes never had a father to look after him, he did not feel as if he had any responsibilities toward raising his child.

      ·         “Finally, after some jostling, his father’s eyes cracked open.  He saw Wes standing over him.  Still squinting, he looked his son in the eyes.  ‘Who are you?’” (Page 102)

This passage shows Wes’ father’s absence in his life because it reveals that his father had been so removed from Wes’ life that he did not even recognize his own son.

      ·         “Wes went inside, but he had no intention of staying there.  He ran to his room and straight to his closet.  He reached up to the top shelf and pulled out the shoe box that held his 9mm Beretta and a few full clips…Tony’s words rang through his mind.  Send a message.” (Pages 103-104)

This quote reveals the theme of violence because it shows that Wes had been brought up in a family under the influence of violence and therefore tended to respond with reckless violent behavior.