Suggestions
Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select.Please wait while we process your payment
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
Please wait while we process your payment
By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy.
Don’t have an account? Subscribe now
Create Your Account
Sign up for your FREE 7-day trial
Already have an account? Log in
Your Email
Choose Your Plan
Save over 50% with a SparkNotes PLUS Annual Plan!
Purchasing SparkNotes PLUS for a group?
Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more!
Price
$24.99 $18.74 /subscription + tax
Subtotal $37.48 + tax
Save 25% on 2-49 accounts
Save 30% on 50-99 accounts
Want 100 or more? Contact us for a customized plan.
Your Plan
Payment Details
Payment Summary
SparkNotes Plus
You'll be billed after your free trial ends.
7-Day Free Trial
Not Applicable
Renews April 3, 2023 March 27, 2023
Discounts (applied to next billing)
DUE NOW
US $0.00
SNPLUSROCKS20 | 20% Discount
This is not a valid promo code.
Discount Code (one code per order)
SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. You may cancel your subscription on your Subscription and Billing page or contact Customer Support at custserv@bn.com. Your subscription will continue automatically once the free trial period is over. Free trial is available to new customers only.
Choose Your Plan
For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more!
You’ve successfully purchased a group discount. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. You'll also receive an email with the link.
Members will be prompted to log in or create an account to redeem their group membership.
Thanks for creating a SparkNotes account! Continue to start your free trial.
Please wait while we process your payment
Your PLUS subscription has expired
Please wait while we process your payment
Please wait while we process your payment
Taylor, Barbie, and Turtle are living in a coastal town in Washington State, which the reader will soon find out is Seattle. Taylor has a job with the Handi-Van company, a driving service in the city, and the three of them are living in a low-rent, dismal apartment. One of the few decorations Taylor has is a photograph holder in the shape of a cube. Inside she hides money that Alice has left for her.
When the chapter opens, Taylor is driving a blind woman, who tells her about how she has forgotten what colors look like. One day, Taylor goes on a date—a picnic—with a man named Kevin from the Handi-Van, and takes Turtle with her. They buy ice cream cones, but Turtle refuses to finish hers. Kevin reveals his rude, ignorant qualities. He brought one apple on the picnic, for himself. Taylor shares tuna sandwiches with him, resenting that she splurged on tuna fish, instead of peanut butter, for this guy.
Once at home, Turtle has a stomachache. When she goes to lie down, she and Taylor realize that Barbie has left. Turtle asks if Barbie left because of something she did. Suddenly, Taylor realizes that her photo cube is gone as well.
Alice is in Sugar's house, on the phone with Taylor, who is explaining that her electricity was turned off when she could not pay the bill. Since Barbie left, Taylor now works at Penney's where Turtle can hang around till her mom gets off work. Alice criticizes her for buying Turtle school clothes instead of paying the bills, but immediately feels bad when she realizes that Taylor literally can hardly keep a roof over her head.
Alice and Sugar go out for a walk to the water hole. On the way, Sugar shows Alice the mulberry tree her husband has planted and the long string of trailer houses that belong to her children. When the finally get to the water hole called "Heaven" one of the many young people there crosses the creek to bring them a string of fish. He politely tells Alice about the fish and snapping turtles they find in the creek.
Talking to Sugar about old times reminds Alice of a gospel singer who Alice used to hear sing at the "colored church." Alice thinks that it's easy to shake and scream like people speaking in tongues, but this woman felt real. Alice thinks "it's peacefulness that is hard to come by on purpose."
Please wait while we process your payment