Returnable Girl Page 198-229

Summary

Not long after Paige dashed out of Cat's basement, the police came and arrested both Cat and Ronnie. Alison was the first and only person that Ronnie called when she arrived at the police station. That day, Ronnie realized that Alison truly loves her and she even told a police officer that Alison was her real mother. She has made her final decision. Ronnie wants to stay with Alison. Cat was in serious trouble and she needed help. She had to go to court because she was charged with attempted assault with a deadly weapon. But after court and everything, Cat was sent to receive serious, medical help and to also serve her time. July 17 was when Ronnie officially became Veronica Lynn Hauser! Ronnie really wanted to visit her brothers, just to see how they're doing in their new foster home while her mother is in a new halfway place. She didn't wanted Alison to come along because it'll be just too awkward for her, so Francis tagged along. Hearing that really made Alison worried but Ronnie is now her daughter, and will always be. Ronnie met with her mother for a few and she really didn't enjoyed any second she was there. When she saw her brothers, it reminded me of how she used to act before she met Alison and she talked to them (mainly Derek) about her experiences and some advices. But her trip to Alaska had to end sooner or later, and it ended on a good note. Her brothers would visit Ronnie soon =) Ronnie is finally at home, snugged in her bed, and listening. Listening to the "sounds of home" that comforts her and not having to worry about anyone leaving her ever again.

Quote "But I interrupted. "Yes, she is. She's my real mother," " (Lowell 200).

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This quote shows that Ronnie has overcome her true fear. Ever since her mother abandoned her, Ronnie was never able to trust another human being. That is, up until she met Alison. After spending so much time with Alison, Ronnie noticed how much Alison loves and truly cares about her. Ronnie has been through a lot but she finally realized where she wanted to stay; With Alison. She accepted Alison and by calling Alison her "real" mother is such a big step-up for Ronnie. I loved the ending of this story. It teaches me that no matter how big of a problem you have, you can always overcome it.

Returnable Girl Page 145-195

Summary

On April 9, Ronnie was surely positive that she wanted to live with her mother instead of Alison. Francis had a little talk with Ronnie, trying to help Ronnie think more into depth about her situation. But Ronnie was still leaning more on her mother's side. That is, up until her birthday. Her mother actually send her a extra small shirt that Ronnie would never even think of wearing in her life as a gift for Ronnie. She also talked to her mother that day and apparently, she has a new boyfriend whom was once addicted to cocaine and is now in recovery. Their conversation ended in awkward silences and anger that day. Alison had also been trying to have some talks with Ronnie and to be honest, Ronnie loved those talks more than her talks with her mother. That left her very confused about her decision. At one point, Ronnie felt comfortable enough to tell Alison of when her mother left her. After telling Alison everything, Ronnie was assured that Alison would always choose Ronnie, no matter what and that made Ronnie felt very secure. During a school dance, Ronnie and the popular girls saw Cat all over Tyler (Paige's toy-boy) and Paige got really angry and claimed that she would make Cat's life miserable and she succeeded. Paige had everyone on her side, trying to torment Cat. Cat even stopped going to school and made a plan to "scare" Paige, as in pay-back for what she did to Cat's reputation. Well, Cat's plan worked out but didn't end as smoothly. Paige definitely got scared after Cat pointed a gun towards Paige. 

Quote "I suddenly knew that no matter what happened, Alison, my Alison, would always choose me." (Lowell 182).

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This quote shows how Ronnie has grown since the beginning of the story. Ronnie has always thought that she was going to go home with her actual family, sooner or later. But after spending so many days, weeks, months at Alison's house, Ronnie is starting to truly trust Alison. Ronnie hasn't told anyone what really happened when her mother left her, but she told Alison about it all. She was positive that Alison wouldn't judge her or treat her any different than before, that's why Ronnie chose to tell Alison what happened. In her heart, she knows that Alison would always support her, 100%.

Returnable Girl Page 94-144

Summary

On New Year's Eve, which was also Alison's birthday, Cat invited herself to sleep over at Ronnie's house because she didn't want to be alone. That night, Ronnie discovered a whole new, shocking side to Cat. Cat cuts herself to release her stress/fears of mainly her brother. They think that he's either a creep, a pervert, or both. On New Year's Day, Ronnie spent her day with Alison and Francis traveling. Ronnie had a blast that day but that night? Not so much. Just when she was trying to fall asleep, tons of different thoughts jumped into her thoughts. Ronnie was actually considering whether or not, she would accept Alison's adoption of Ronnie. After spending not even a day at Cat's chaotic and crazy house then returning to Alison's house, Ronnie actually said that it was nice to be home. As a matter of fact, she even told Alison to start Ronnie's file if she wanted to adopt her. =) Although, Ronnie is positive that she would like Alison to adopt her, she still misses her family. On March 19, Ronnie's mother finally called her after 3 months and she even written a letter that said that she's ready for Ronnie to move in with her again! :o It turns out that Midge and Alison purposely hid the fact that Ronnie's mother had recently moved in a halfway house and her letter. Ronnie was really furious after she found out that Alison had read her private mail from her mother and actually kept it from Ronnie. In the end, Ronnie told Alison that she wants to move back to Alaska, with her mom, and her real family.

Quote 

"I wish I could just ride along in that safe and cozy sidecar forever-and let somebody else be in charge of watching out for all the danger " (Lowell 103).

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This quote shows the other side of Ronnie. Even though, a lot of people sees Ronnie as a strong and a "I don't care about anything" kind of girl, she stills has another side of her. She's terrified. She doesn't have the courage to face what is going on in her life right now. Ronnie just wants someone else to help and protect her from her fears and the danger.

Returnable Girl Page 41-91

Summary:

While Ronnie was with her dog during obedience school, she actually met her old friend, Francis. Her encounter with him brought back a lot of good ol' memories of church. Francis seemed to care very much about Ronnie's family situations which made Alison a bit jealous of him. But the jealous and worried side of Alison showed Ronnie how much Alison truly cares for Ronnie. Ronnie and Cat are just merely talking to each other. As for Ronnie and the popular girls at school, it's not getting pretty. The popular girls invited Ronnie to go shopping with them and they peer pressured Ronnie to shoplifted something for Paige. After the trip to the mall, Ronnie decided to sleep over at Cat's house, to secretly make up for her horrible treatment(s) towards Cat. During her night at Cat's house, Ronnie got semi-drunk and poured out everything. From the time she framed Cat for stealing the necklace to everyone talking trash about her. Christmas was arriving soon and to be frank, Ronnie wasn't as excited as most teenagers would be. It was because of her devastating past. Her uncle and his girlfriend decided to put her into foster care, a week before Christmas. At some point, Ronnie went into Alison's room to take a look-see and she spotted a really beautiful bracelet and she took it. She didn't meant to steal it because she had the intention to return it but something got in the way. Then one day, Alison saw Ronnie with Alison's bracelet and she was furious! She screamed, yelled, scolded, on how could Ronnie just lie to her and how can she be so heartless? Alison started to scare Ronnie and said that she might just call Midge. What happened that night made Ronnie realized that she doesn't want to leave. So she quickly dashed downstairs and begged Alison to let her stay and to give her one more chance because she really cares about Alison. Ho ho ho! Merry Christmas everyone. Christmas has finally arrived and she spent her entire day with just herself and Alison. Alison has gotten Ronnie a lot of gifts but none of that even matters because after everything, Alison finally admitted that she loves Ronnie very much and that she was willing to adopt Ronnie, if her family situation doesn't work out. That, right there, touched Ronnie's heart and left her speechless.

Quote:

"But dogs are innocent, especially puppies. Lucky doesn't mean to do the bad things he does; it's not intentional--he just can't help himself." (Lowell 83).

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This quote is a comparison between dogs and herself. Ronnie isn't trying to say that she's innocent but she's not evil neither. She doesn't want to do bad things to others and sometimes, herself. It's not on purpose whatsoever, it just happens. She truly couldn't help herself. But now she is starting to understand a lot more than she did, I believe that she can achieve this rocky road that she's going through.

Returnable Girl Page 1-40

Summary:

First off, the protagonist Veronica Hartman is a foster child. She is also known as Ronnie. Ronnie has had a tough childhood being a foster child, going to different places, getting kicked backed, and having to do it the whole cycle once more. As of right now, Ronnie is currently staying with Alison Hauser whom is also a therapist. Ronnie and Alison had a few arguments here and there but deep down, they both care for each other. Ronnie's biological mother is in Alaska, along with her step-brothers. Her mother calls Ronnie from time to time and just explains to Ronnie, how it's best for Ronnie to stay where she is right now because of financial and drugs/alcohol problems. When school began, Ronnie had always admired and wanted to be part of the popular girls. She was willing to do anything to fit it. She even framed her one, true friend who liked Ronnie for Ronnie, just so she could become friends with the popular girls. One day, Ronnie came home to realized that she's going to another foster home and that could be her permanent one. She was complementing between staying at Alison's house and keep her "normal" reputation at school or the new home that was supposedly "rich" and be even more compatible with the popular girls. In the end, she chose Alison's house.

Quote:

"(I still believe in God, even after all that's happened to me.)" (Lowell 3).

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This quote alone is a very superb quote to show that how strong of character Ronnie truly is. After everything that she has been through in her past, childhood, and also the present, she still believes in God. In my opinion, God is actually a symbol for hope. Ronnie still has that bit of hope left inside of her that keeps her living as days goes on. I think that this quote shows how strong she is because God and religion is a huge part of Ronnie's life, most importantly, her childhood because it was introduced to us (readers) in the beginning of the story. So, for her to still believe in God can also be interpreted to her having some hope that her mother and herself will reunite one day.

Chinese Cinderella: The true story of an unwanted daughter P.162-205

Summary

Although Adeline wasn't the only student at her new school, the Sacred Heart School and Orphanage wasn't a great time nor experience for Adeline, socially. She's doing tremendous, academically. As a matter of fact, she was the top student in her class and she skipped a few grades at such a young age. But she despised Sundays, which are visiting days at her school. Adeline seems always hide herself in the library with tons of books or in the restroom on Sundays because no one ever visits her. Just when the term ended, Adeline got the privilege to come back home for a visit. During that visit, Adeline expressed a tad bit about how she's feeling down, worried, stressed, despised, and just scared. But Ye Ye talked some sense in her, by giving her, his support and encouragement. When she returned to school, there was a playwriting competition going on. So she decided to enter and dedicated her play to Ye Ye. Not that long after, Adeline was told that Ye Ye has died. During his funeral, Niang told Adeline that there's a possibility that Adeline is not going to attend school anymore. Adeline was deeply affected by the death of Ye Ye and Niang's horrify news, but it all changed one day when her Father wanted to see her immediately. It turns out that Adeline had won the International Play-writing Competition! Because of her win, she made her Father proud of her, and so she convinced him to let her go abroad to England for college. Lastly, Adeline finally received a letter from her Aunt Baba. Aunt Baba just wrote what Ye Ye told Adeline. Aunt Baba wanted Adeline to know that she loves, care, and cherish Adeline oh so very much. Also, for her to keep persevering and try not to feel discouraged. 

Quote

"I have faith in you." (Mah 181).

*The quote above was said by Adeline' grandfather, Ye Ye.

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     From this quote, Ye Ye must've been a very important person in Adeline's life, besides Aunt Baba. This was the scene where Adeline told her grandfather and her Third Brother how she felt despised, unwanted, afraid, and whether excelling in school is a good thing or not. After Ye Ye heard what Adeline had just said, he immediately tried to comfort her by telling her that everything is possible and that he has faith in her. He also told her to always try her hardest in everything and that'll make him extremely proud. Because of Ye Ye's words, Adeline had a little confident boost and she entered a playwright competition. She even dedicated her entire play to her beloved grandfather, Ye Ye.

Chinese Cinderella: The true story of an unwanted daughter P.123-161

Summary

After Adeline said goodbye to her aunt, off to Tianjin, she goes. Adeline was going to attend St. Joseph, a school that Niang went to before. St. Joseph was a whole lot different than Adeline's previous school. For example, classes were divided, according on how well your ability to speak English are. After November 1948, Nancy Chen and Mother Natalie left Tianjin, more and more girls would stop attending school each and everyday. In December, Adeline was the only student left at St. Joseph. All of a sudden, Mother Marie yelled for Adeline and told her that her aunt was going to Hong Kong and wanted to take her along. She was extremely excited to see Aunt Baba, but it wasn't Aunt Baba, it was Niang's older sister, Aunt Reine. Niang doesn't know that Adeline is coming back and Adeline's afraid of Niang's reaction when she returns. She wanted to go to Shanghai with her Aunt Baba, but Aunt Reine didn't let her. Adeline really enjoyed her stay with the Schilling family because they actually treat her with respect and fairness. It felted like she was a part of their family. When Adeline got home, everyone ran to greet Aunt Reine, her husband, and her kids. For the whole week that the Schillings stayed over, Niang went out with them everyday. But she never bother to invite Adeline to come along. Victor noticed that Niang was being unfair to Adeline so he decided to miss out on the trip to stay home and accompany Adeline. After the Schillings left, Adeline was soon sent to another boarding school in Hong Kong. She first thought that she was in danger and her parents didn't want her anymore because the name of the school was Sacred Heart School and Orphanage. But then, after Niang had a talk with these two nuns, Adeline was relieved because it was the middle of the school year and she got accepted as a boarder!

Quote

"Then she said, "What have you done that your parents should wish to punish you like this!" (Mah 129).

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I got very angry when I read this quote that a nun had told Adeline. I'm angry for Adeline because in my opinion, Adeline haven't done a thing that's wrong, rude, nor disrespectful. By sending her to Tianjin at this point of time was really messed up. They don't even care about Adeline's safety nor feelings, they probably just wanted to punish her for the fun of it. I just despise how wrong and unfair, her family treats her. I believe in karma, which is what comes around, goes around. But for Adeline's whole childhood, this is the complete opposite of karma, and that's what made me so angry when I read this part. Why does Adeline has to be treated like this, when she didn't do anything wrong? It's just immoral.

Chinese Cinderella: The true story of an unwanted daughter P.85-122

Summary

Father and Niang still continued to travel back and forth to Tianjin due to their businesses. They even took Big Sister along with them at times. Niang brought Big Sister to Tianjin because she wanted her to meet Samuel Sung, the guy that Niang wants Big Sister to marry, and Big Sister agreed. Before the wedding, Aunt Baba personally gave Big Sister a jade pendant and Big Sister pleaded Aunt Baba not to mention a word about the pendant to Niang. Everyone beside them wore formal Western suits and gowns, except for Adeline, and her three brothers. When the banquet was almost ending, Adeline went to the bathroom and accidently overheard Grand Aunt and Niang talking to each other. Grand Aunt was comparing Niang's jade ring to the jade pendant that she had asked Aunt Baba to give it to Big Sister as her wedding present. Later, Big Sister and Niang decided to talk privately about something. It wasn't until the next morning, when Adeline found out what Big Sister and Niang was really talking about. It turns out that Big Sister lied to Niang, saying that it was all Aunt Baba's fault because she told Big Sister to keep all of this a secret and never reveal it to Niang. After Big Sister lied to Niang, she just left on her honeymoon with her newly husband. Not long after her Big Sister's wedding, Adeline was invited to Wu Chun-mei's (Her classmate) birthday party. That was one time that Adeline felt like she was a normal little girl just going to one of her friend's birthday party. She was having lots of fun, until she realized that she just broken one of Niang's rules and she was terrified of the consequences so she ran straight home. Wu Chun-mei and her classmates couldn't wait any longer for Adeline to return, so she called her house and Niang picked up. After the phone call ended, Niang called Adeline a manipulative liar and thief and said that girls like Adeline doesn't deserve to stay in her house, and that they needed to be sent somewhere else. When Father got home from work, he went into Adeline's room and whipped her, and forced her to tell the truth. After he finished whipping her, he told her that Aunt Baba was a bad influence on her, so they must be separated. The next day, Adeline went to school as if she was perfectly fine. She also found out that her class was having an election for class president and she won! Her classmates choose Adeline to be their class president and they wanted to surprise her by visiting her at her house. Niang didn't approved of it whatsoever so she started loudly lecturing and slapped Adeline so hard that her classmates could've heard it all. She had no other choice but to drag her little feet down the stairs and told all of her classmates to go home. After all of her classmates left, Father and Niang decided to send Adeline to a boarding school in Tianjin.

Quote

""I'm afraid you two will have to be separated." I looked up at him in utter desolation. The fabric of my life was about to be torn apart." (Mah 104).

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This shows how close Adeline's relationship with Aunt Baba was. Mah used a powerful personification when she said that the fabric of her life was tearing up. I could actually feel the pain that she felt at that moment, because I, too had to be separated from someone I passionately loved and cared about. This quote also screams out many sorrow emotions, like afraid, loneliness, and heartbroken. After she gets separated with her Aunt Baba, I think that was when Adeline began to grow out of her childhood and became a tad more independent. Since she was being sent to a boarding school in Tianjin, Aunt Baba can't be by her side anymore. Although, this was a horrid moment in the story, I believe that this was a teaching for Adeline. This whole situation caused her and her Aunt Baba to be separated, but it'll make Adeline much stronger than before.

Chinese Cinderella: The true story of an unwanted daughter P.42-P.84

Summary

Chinese New Year finally came and everyone was excited to celebrate a new year and also a new beginning for the whole family. However, the five stepchildren of the Father's side were highly disappointed after they received their new clothes. They all noticed the inequality between them and Niang's children, which is Fourth Brother and Little Sister. Fourth Brother and Little Sister were given stylish Western and fashionable clothing, while the rest received Chinese traditional gowns. Then, the five of them decided to go into a room and discussed everything about how Niang treats them differently compared to their Fourth Brother and Little Sister. They had numerous of examples showing that Niang does indeed show favoritism towards Fourth Brother and Little Sister. For example, all of the three brothers (from the Father's side) had to shave their head, while the Fourth Brother had the most stylist hair cut out of all of the brothers. All five of the stepchildren was planning to write anonymous letters to their Father, explaining all of their problems and complaints. Then, Third Brother found out that Niang was outside of the door room, with her ears glued onto the door. They weren't positive that she had overheard everything, but just to make sure they burned all of the letters and promised each other not to talk about what happened in the room. During dinner, Niang didn't mentioned anything about what she may or may not have heard us talk about in that room. But she did invite Big Sister (which is the other four stepchildren's' so called "leader") to the second floor, where Niang, her Father, Fourth Brother, and Little Sister stayed. After that night, Big Sister had officially changed. She did everything she can to gain Niang's special favors. Big Sister was allowed outgoings with friends, received money, gifts and so much more. Adeline decided that her family situations was way too overwhelming for her to handle at the moment, so she just tried to study really hard and get outstanding grades on her report cards. School is the only way for Adeline to forget all the pain and sadness, that's inside of her. She was nicknamed Genius by her friends at school, because she did tremendously well in her academic grades and also because of her writings and short stories. She actually began writing by accident, but from the point on, Adeline loved to write and read. To her, writing was the only way, she could escape every terrible things that she had to go through every single day. The spring of 1946 came and Adeline's Father decided to take Niang, Big Sister, Fourth Brother, and Little Sister north (Tianjin) for three months. Meanwhile at home, many things had changed even more. Her two oldest brothers started becoming "rebels", by staying out late to be with their friends, whistle at pretty girls, raided the refrigerator and ate whatever they wanted. But everything seemed to return back to it's normal ways not long after Father and Niang returned from Tianjin and also Mr. and Mrs. Huang came for a visit. They were nice enough to gave us seven baby ducklings, for each and every children. But Adeline was the last one to pick and there was only one duckling left, so she had no other choice but to take it. She named her new pet, PLT (Precious Little Treasure). As time went on, Adeline grew a strong connection towards PLT. She considered PLT as her best friend because PLT was always there for her whenever she needed someone to talk to. Unfortunately, PLT died because Jake (family's dog) attacked PLT at the end of chapter 11.

Quote

"By the time my turn arrived, I was left with the tiniest, scrawniest baby bird." (Mah 73).

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This quote is pure genius. Adeline's extraordinary way of words to describe a small bird is an indirect metaphor to her life. Her other siblings that teased her and made her life miserable, took all of the healthy and beautiful ducklings, leaving Adeline the "tiniest, scrawniest baby bird" which is a comparison to how her siblings sees her. When it was Adeline's turn to choose her duckling, there was only one left because all of her siblings took the healthy and better looking ones. They just left her with the one, single duckling that nobody wanted. Adeline was that one, single duckling that nobody wanted. I believe that is why Adeline loved PLT so much, it's because she sees herself in PLT. Also, she wanted to love and care for PLT, just like how she wishes someone can do the same for her one day.

Chinese Cinderella: The true story of an unwanted daughter Pg. 1-41

Summary

Ever since Adeline was born, she was considered bad luck because her mother died 2 weeks after she gave birth to Adeline. Her siblings always tease her, yells at her, and hits her because they hated her. None of her siblings really cared for her. The only ones who cared for Adeline was the adults, which is her aunt Baba, her grandmother Nai Nai, her grandfather Ye ye, and her father. But after her father remarried, his love for his family suddenly went away. He still loved and cared for his family and kids, but he just doesn't show it often enough. Adeline got an award for being a leader in her class, and she got a medal that she can wear for a whole week. Her father noticed her award and told her to keep trying her hardest in school. Because of those inspiring words, she tried very hard to continually earn that award every single week. Adeline loved going to school. She enjoys being in school, than at her own home. There, no one looks down on her nor treats her wrong. One morning, her father left the house to supposedly buy stamps, but he never came back. Few months later, his wife took her son and left too. No one knew where they went or whether or not they're even together. During that time period, Adeline was actually feeling about little bit better about herself. The Japanese stopped going to their house to look for her father, they went out together to eat at different kinds of restaurants, they were allowed to have friends over on Sundays, and so much more. But, everything drastically changed after Nai Nai passed away because of a massive stroke. Six weeks after Nai Nai's funeral, Ye Ye took Adeline and her siblings to the railroad station to see their father and to go follow him to Shanghai. When they arrived at Shanghai and greeted Niang (The father's wife), they could sense that she was a lot stricter than before. Adeline's first day of school in Shanghai was a scary experience for her. Everyone forgot about her and she had to find someone on her own to drive her to school. Then, when she finished school, no one waited outside to pick her up. She started to walk around, trying to find her way home. She saw a telephone and used it to call her father. On their way home, he gave her a map and told her to use it, so she won't get lost anymore. A few days later, Aunt Baba and Ye Ye arrived at Shanghai. Aunt Baba bought along Niang's daughter that she left when she was only a few months old. Niang's daughter saw her own mother as a stranger and didn't listened to Niang at all. Niang turned impatient and angry, so she slapped her own 2 year old baby. Adeline couldn't hold it in any longer, and told Niang to stop hitting her, she's just a baby. Even since then, Niang doesn't care for Adeline anymore nor like her. At the end of chapter 8, everyone got their tram fare money, except for Adeline.

Quote

"She died because of you. You are bad luck." (Mah 3).

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My heart filled with sorrow when I read this part. How could anyone from her family say such hurtful words to a 4 year old girl? I do have pity on her, but at the same time, I'm confident that Adeline can make through this horrible phrase that she has to go through at such a young age. I can relate to Adeline's feeling, because I felt like an unwanted daughter before. But I wasn't as young as her, so it must've been more difficult for her to overcome everything than I. Feeling like no one cares about you or loves you really hurts. It doesn't hurt physically for me, but it definitely does hurts mentally. Whereas for Adeline, she had to suffer through her siblings teasing her, slapping her, and twisting her arm and the hurtful words of her siblings that stayed in her head for a long, long time.