Bright+Star+of+a+Summer+Evening

This chapter gives us the most information on the grandmother, who is not mentioned in the book. When she is, she has maybe two or three lines at a time. Now this chapter goes back into her history that Jess never knew of. How she was a brilliant musician and was ristricted from persuing her talent and playing for the Queen of England by her dad, which she carried with her for the rest of her life. Jess and the reader finally get some insight into the grandmother just before the book ends. (Speed)
 * The Big Questions: How does this chapter fit the novel as a whole / Why is it important / What should a good reader take away from this chapter?**

I agree with Collins. Throughout the novel, Annie Barbara Sorrells had been a character that spoke a lot but not much was said about her, to say the least. Therefore, Jess' grandmother remained a mystery to me until I read the second to last chapter. I discovered not only that she had been a talented and skilled musician who had ended her career short when she realized her father disapproved of her passion, but that her closest friend was also her cousin, Samantha Barefoot.Jess' Aunt Samantha was loud and rowdy and loved to have a good time, which was interesting to me because Annie was sometimes a reserved and quiet person who spoke mostly short phrases at a time. When the time came for Aunt Samantha and the eldest woman of the Robert household to finally perform together, the lines in the song that struck me most were "..For they are like a bright star of a summer evening. They first appear and then they're gone." Since this was the first and the last that I ever read about this new, exciting character called Sam Barefoot, those lines relate to her, not only because she was not a long-lived character in //I am One of you Forever//, but because even in Annie's life, Samantha had been there along and then disappeared when she had acquired fame and fortune. Not to mention, the members of Barefoots familly were "gone" as well, leaving Aunt Sam familyless and lonely on the inside. (Maia Y)

In this chapter we learn more about Jess’s grandmother, Annie Barbara, and why she is the way she is. We haven’t gotten a lot of information on grandmother, but this is a lot we never knew. This might be stretching it, but personally I feel this chapter really changes Jess’s views on life. He learns that there are more to people then what they seem. Not only that, but a great deal of people skills. It fits in with the rest of the novel because it’s another step to Jess growing up. (Dorothy Spratlin)

**Important Quotes (and commentary)**
 * "I had to go to my mother for enlightenment and she told me it was an old grudge my grandmother had always kept against her father... 'He stopped her from meeting the Queen of England,' she said." (170-171)
 * This is the cause of the conflict in the chapter, and the conflict is also very important here. (Speed)
 * "//I have often wondered why women love men, but more times I've wondered how men can love them;They're men's ruination and sudden downfall, And they cause men to labor behind the stone wall."//
 * These song lyrics are almost perfect representations of how a Pre-Helen Jess feels towards women. They are a good thing to keep in mind before you begin reading //Helen.// (McCutchen)

“‘When she was fourteen she was already playing in the band for the best square dance troupe in the mountains. The dancers were invited to a festival in Scotland and they were to dance before the queen and then be presented to her. It meant a lot to Mama. It meant a lot to everybody, taking our music and dance across the ocean for the queen to enjoy. Her heart was just set on it. I’ve heard Aunt Minnie Lou tell about your grandmother practicing her curtsy in front of a mirror. For hours and hours.’”

~This is the whole situation summed up into a small paragraph. How grandma had to give up her dream just because her father said no. Jess learns from this though how politely she did it, yet she still didn’t let her co band members down, but instead gave the chance to her cousin. Even more she remained friendly with her. Grandmother shows a lot of self control and strength to Jess. (Dorothy Spratlin)

**Moments of astonishingly good writing**
 * "She had a dark contralto that sounded like it had mellowed in an oak barrel for slow decades, a voice as rich as damask soaked in burgundy wine." (p 178)
 * I can see the dark burgundy and imagine Aunt Sam's voice as she sings. The descriptors perfectly fit the range of a contralto with the deep dark color. As I read this, I did not know what contralto meant, but upon looking the word up, it turned out the imagery perfectly fitted the word contralto, which is the lowest voice for female singers. (Speed)
 * "Her terracota hair was wild and frazzly, and two blue silk bows perched in it like butterflies on a tile roof. Her freckled face was scarcely wrinkled, her lively blue eyes shone with bright feeling and easy mischief."
 * This whole passage had amazing description to every point of detail to get the full aspect of the image of the person. Also, there were some really great similes.

“But If Aunt Sam considered it a promise, then so it was, and my grandmother would gnaw live rattlesnakes sooner than break a promise.”

~I love the way this is phrases. Great comparison. (Dorothy Spratlin)