My Name Is Not Easy

“My name is hard like ocean ice grinding at the shore or wind pounding the tundra or sun so bright on the snow, it burns your eyes. My name is all of us huddled up here together, waiting to hear the sound of that plane that’s going to take us away, me and my brothers. Nobody saying nothing about it.”

This quote captures the poetic importance of the title of the novel. The imagery used in this quote to describe the sound of Luke’s real name highlights the name as identity and as something that can have a visceral impact. This quote metaphorically connects what Luke sees as other people’s opinions of his name being difficult or ugly to the situation of fear and loneliness that marks his departure from home.

“Some things are good to know, like knowing what lies on the other side of that smooth line the tundra makes at the edge of the sky. When you don’t know, you feel uneasy about what you might find out there, which is how I’m feeling about Catholic school right now. Uneasy.”

Fear of the unknown characterizes Luke’s departure from home, which is traumatic. He parallels the unknown of Catholic school with the impossibility of knowing what is at the edge of the sky. This parallel emphasizes the vastness of his fear of Catholic school and the uncertainty that characterizes his journey. Because Luke is a child who has never left home before, all he knows is the setting he grew up in, which is the only frame of reference he has.

“I can still see Isaac’s tear-streaked face pressed against the window of that car. Like it’s happening over and over, like time’s folded in on itself, and part of me is always going to be trapped on this side of things, watching that car disappear into the dark woods with my little brother trapped inside.”

The image of Isaac’s removal haunts Luke. This quote is a poignant picture of the trauma of dehumanization and destruction of family. This moment is so profound and traumatic for Luke that he will never be able to forget it, which speaks to the long-term damage done by forcibly removing children from their homes.