_All We Have Left_ by Wendy Mills

Lists-- no commas

I hate it when she does this, makes me feel young and obvious and stupid. p 40 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills


Confidence/ Strength

"Yes," she says. "What I wanted to say is this: you are stronger than you think you are. We all are."
p76 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

"The more I discovered the more I want to know." p291 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

Religion/ Faith

Eventually my father intervened, telling me gently that faith was a road map to happiness, God willing, not a roadblock to fun, and asked me to go to my room to calm down. p92
All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

While I'm on this topic for a moment, I live in a rural area with not a lot of diversity of race, ethnicity, or religion. For my students, this book gives them one point of view that they can use to start opening up their minds to more than the very limited point of view they may witness in popular culture and news. I found the discussions of religion to be a great window for my students to start to see more outside of themselves.

He looks at our linked hands. "My dad said it made him a better Muslim, because he saw how important it was for him to show Americans that all Muslims weren't like the ones who hijacked those planes." p268 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

Quotes inside of quotes
 
"I wasn't though," I say.
"You weren't what?"
"Going to make fun of you," I say. "My father says that 'tears are prayers too. They travel to Allah when we can't speak.'" p144 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

"'To you your religion, and to me mine.' Just because people do bad things in the name of religion doesn't make the religion bad. People do crappy things, people do awesome things. That's just people."  p156 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

Faith/ Romance/ Irony

I remember then that I'm wearing the hijab, and that I shouldn't be flirting with some punk. Not that I was flirting, I was preventing a crime, and if I happened to notice the would-be thief was cute, well... Just because I definitely don't want to date anyone, I'm not dead. p110 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

9/11
I know it may seem strange to make it its own section, but there's this great passage starting on page 179 and I'm going to give just the first little part of it. It's Ms. Jonna's story of 9/11 and if you're looking for a piece of this to pull out for a book talk, this might be a good one.

But Ms. Jonna listens patiently, and I realize that maybe everybody's story is important, because 9/11 didn't just happen to the people who died, it happened to the entire country. People were living their lives, doing everyday things, when suddenly the planes hit, and time ripped into two pages titled "Before 9/11" and "After." With their clumsy stories, they were saying: "We felt it. We remember where we were when the world changed." p179 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

Gorgeous and heartbreaking description

As soon as we push through the doors into the hallway, we can smell smoke again. The hallway is empty, and a few ceiling tiles lie on the floor. I can see daylight out a window and it seems so strange that the sky would still be blue, that the sun is still shining, that the world outside is rolling along like it always does. p193 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

She takes a deep breath and presses her hand to her chest. "My mom used to tell me when I was having one of my attacks that I needed to hold on for just one minute longer than I thought I could bear, and then one more. I think bravery is trusting yourself enough to hold on for that one more minute. I don't know what's going on out there," she says, waving a hand toward the window, "but I've seen what's going on in here, in these stairwells and offices. There are angels walking among us today. And you're one of them." p236 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

"People do terrible things. People do beautiful things. It's against the black backdrop of evil that the shining light of good shows the brightest. We can't just focus on the darkness of the night, or we'll miss out on the stars," I say. p 354 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills


Self-destruction

I realize suddenly that Nick is a coward. I wanted so badly to see something better in him, but my wishful thinking was never going to make him a different person. He gave me something that felt so big and important at the time, but in the end it was all fun-house mirror that reflected back the things I hated the most about myself. He pulls the strings of people's emotions from behind the scenes, but he'll never stand up for anything, for anybody, ever. p219 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

"I didn't know who to be mad at, so I got mad at everybody."  p233 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

"Is it bad, Jesse? It must be. Mom told me what you did. I guess I hoped that things would be better after a while. I let you down, Jesse, I know I did, but I was too busy trying to save myself." p243 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills

"So let me get this straight," Dad says, and his voice is rising, but still with that false, almost happy, tone. "You've decided it would be a good idea to hang out with one of the people who killed your brother?'" This last part he roars like machine gun spray across the room.

I back up fast until I run into the glass front door and the bells jingle merrily above me.

"Adam was only three when 9/11 happened, Dad, he didn't have anything to do with--"

 "I don't care how old he was!" He stands up with a clatter, the stool falling away behind him. "Those people want to destroy us! They hate everything we stand for! They don't eat, they don't drink, they live on hate for America!"

I don't say anything, but I can't help but think he lives on hate, too, and how is it any different? p297 All We Have Left by Wendy Mills


***Any mistakes in the quotes are my own. Please let me know if you see any.***


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