There was no shame, the boy thought in losing yourself something as natural as gravity—where one doesn't jump but is pulled, blameless, toward the sea.
-- Narrator (chapter 2)

Importance: Hai's near death by suicide at the start of the novel conveys the profundity of his despair. Hai is desperate to be free from his shame and guilt, and believes that death is his only escape. This moment acts as the inciting incident of the novel, ultimately spurring Hai towards change, growth, and healing.

So when you eat it, you take in the carrot's will to go upward. To heaven.
-- Grazina (chapter 2)

Importance: Grazina theorizes that carrots can cure sadness, inviting Hai into her magical way of thinking. Grazina is intimate with loss, violence, despair, and grief just like Hai. However, she has concocted ways to handle her sorrow. Her carrot theory is just one way that she combats life's difficulties and seeks joy in life's small...