“The crack of the judge’s gravel; that single word: guilty; his mother’s tears. And later, in the judge’s chambers: ‘I’m reluctant to sentence a thirteen-year-old to Williston, especially on the first offense. There’s one other possibility. It’s a program called CNC—Charting a New Course.’”

In this quote, Luke replays the moment in the courtroom when he became a convicted felon for a crime he didn’t commit. Luke’s memory is triggered when Will asks him how he ended up on the CNC course. This quote highlights Luke’s young age, the fact that he had never been in trouble with the law before, and that his only choices were jail or the CNC program—Luke did not have a team of lawyers to challenge the ruling, and, in many ways, he was alone with the knowledge of being innocent but trapped.

“[S]he’s in the girls’ cabin next door. I guarantee you’ll hate her. I should have been an only child.”

Will is telling Luke about his sister, Lyssa. This quote is important because Will’s character has just been introduced, and he is already trying to sway Luke against his sister. This is the first time Will expresses his desire to be an only child, a sentiment that he repeats numerous times, foreshadowing Lyssa’s presumed death toward the end of the book.

“Luke turned back to where brother and sister were snapping at each other. This family was some piece of work. Real funny to joke about criminal records to a guy who had one that would never go away. Like you could get arrested for sibling squabbles, anyway.”

Luke is watching Will and Lyssa bicker while they clean the deck. Lyssa had just cheerily commented to Luke that they almost got a criminal record for fighting, but their lawyer got the charges dropped. This quote captures Luke’s bitterness at the unfairness of having a criminal record for a crime he didn’t commit, as well as his family’s inability to afford a lawyer, while Lyssa jokes about getting a criminal record for arguing with a sibling.