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).

Reaction:

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).

Reaction:

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.