American Literature

I tugged again at my collar and dragged my feet in the dust, allowing it to sift
back onto my socks and shoes like gritty red snow. I hated the dress. And the shoes.
There was little I could do in a dress, and as for shoes, they imprisoned freedom-loving
feet accustomed to the feel of the warm earth.

This excerpt from the book speaks volumes in a few words about Cassies
personality as a stubborn, willful girl and her desire to be free of any restraints on
her movement. The language not only conveys a feel for the dry, hot region where
they live but also brings to light some of the tension that she and the other characters
feel in their situation, especially between them and the white characters.

I asked him once why he had to go away, why the land was so important. He
took my hand and said in his quiet way  Look out there, Cassie girl. All that belongs to
you. You aint never had to live on nobodys place but your own and long as I live and
the family survives, youll never have to . Thats important. You may not understand that
now, but one day you will. Then youll see.

The author here sums up beautifully the struggle that many blacks faced at this
to lay their own roots down. In this instance, she uses a simple question from Cassie to
define the chord that runs deep in her family to own their land, and not to be at anyone
elses mercy. This ability to hold on to something sets up a legacy, and the imminent
struggle, that they family will have to undergo in the near future as violence towards
African-Americans heats up in the story.