Her lower lip slips into her mouth. Taste of salt. Her teeth compress the soft ribbon of flesh. Hard. Harder, until it hurts.
-- Emma Z (Prologue)

Importance: When Emma takes the CogPro test, she is incredibly anxious and nervous, and she hurts herself to cope with her feelings. It is an important quote because it shows the negative effect standardized tests can have on young children.

Lauren had compensated for Julian’s death by throwing herself into her daughter’s development and education. Advanced math, Chinese, martial arts, flute lessons with the principal player in the Colorado Symphony: by eighth grade Tessa had become a living, breathing benchmark, proof of concept for the overinvested parenting they all practiced with varying degrees of obliviousness and guilt. Then, the summer before high school, something snapped.
-- Rose (Chapter 2)

Importance: Tessa is driven to an emotional breakdown that lands her in rehab. This quote is important because it suggests that rigorous...