Identify and Explain Key Quotations in 'Anita and Me'

Whenever you write about a novel, you will need to know some key quotations that you can use. We think of this as the ‘evidence’ that builds your case, supporting the point you want to say.

It is never enough to just have an idea about a novel, however amazing it is! You need to show what part of the book your idea is based on, in the text itself. So you use quotations to support your point, and that way you get great marks!

When you write a paragraph using a Point – Evidence – Explain pattern, you make it easier for an examiner to give you marks. That may seem strange, but it is a structure that enables you to show that you have the skills of understanding what is in the book and some of the ‘hows’ too – the different things writers do to get their story across. The more detail you can give as you explain, the better.

Of course, the whole book is a quotation because the words belong to the author! The hard part can be choosing because there is so much to choose from.

In this activity, we will identify some simple selections that can be easy-to-remember quotations. 

We will show how these quotations can identify a character by a description, reveal something about them by what they say and how they speak, or see how a theme is being developed by the author. We will also dip into some techniques that writers use.

You should always refer to your own text when working through these examples. These quotations are for reference only.