Walk Two Moons

by

Sharon Creech

Gram Character Analysis

Gram is Sal’s grandmother, Dad’s mother, and Gramps’s wife. Gramps affectionately refers to her as his “gooseberry.” Gram, like Gramps, is quirky and often gets into trouble—she and Gramps have been arrested for stealing tires and pulled over for driving on the shoulder of the road. But Sal describes her grandparents as extremely kind and giving, if mischievous. Gram has been a huge part of Sal’s life all her life; she and Gramps lived on the next farm over when Sal lived in Bybanks, and she often took care of Sal when Momma and Dad couldn’t. After Momma’s death, Sal, Gram, and Gramps take a road trip to the town where she died, and Sal learns about her grandparents’ relationship along the way. They met when Gram was a “wild” teenager, and she agreed to marry Gramps after hearing how well he treated his dog. They had four sons, including Dad, though Dad’s three brothers have since died. All Gram and Gramps’s children were born in their “marriage bed,” which is the bed that belonged to Gramps’s parents that Gram and Gramps then received on their wedding night. On the trip, Gram also encourages Sal to tell them a story to keep them entertained, and Gram enjoys hearing Sal talk about Phoebe (whom Gram refers to as “Peeby”). Trouble does find Gram along the trip: when they stop so they can skinny dip in the Missouri River, a poisonous water moccasin bites Gram’s leg, necessitating a night in the hospital. Following this, Gram’s health continues to decline. After seeing Old Faithful blow in Yellowstone—a sight that Gram desperately wanted to see—Gram develops a bad cough and is diagnosed as having had a stroke when they reach Coeur D’Alene. She dies in the hospital that night, while Sal drives on her own the rest of the way to Lewiston. Gramps arranges for Gram’s body to be flown back to Bybanks and buries her in the aspen grove where they got married.

Gram Quotes in Walk Two Moons

The Walk Two Moons quotes below are all either spoken by Gram or refer to Gram. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Judgment, Perspective, and Storytelling Theme Icon
).
Chapter 15 Quotes

My long hair floated all around me. My mother’s hair had been long and black, like mine, but a week before she left, she cut it. My father said to me, “Don’t cut yours, Sal. Please don’t cut yours.”

My mother said, “I knew you wouldn’t like it if I cut mine.”

My father said, “I didn’t say anything about yours.”

“But I know what you’re thinking,” she said.

“I loved your hair, Sugar,” he said.

I saved her hair. I swept it up from the kitchen floor and wrapped it in a plastic bag and hid it beneath the floorboards of my room. It was still there, along with the postcards she sent.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle (speaker), Dad (speaker), Gram, Gramps
Related Symbols: Hair
Page Number: 85
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 16 Quotes

The morning after my father learned that my mother was not coming back, he left for Lewiston, Idaho. Gram and Gramps came to stay with me. I had pleaded to go along, but my father said he didn’t think I should have to go through that. That day I climbed up into the maple and watched the singing tree, waiting for it to sing. I stayed there all day and on into the early evening. It did not sing.

At dusk, Gramps placed three sleeping bags at the foot of the tree, and he, Gram, and I slept there all night. The tree did not sing.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle, Dad, Gram, Gramps
Related Symbols: The Singing Tree
Page Number: 93
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 24 Quotes

“So you didn’t leave Gramps just because of the cussing?”

“Salamanca, I don’t even remember why I did that. Sometimes you know in your heart you love someone, but you have to go away before your head can figure it out.”

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Gram (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle, Dad, Gramps
Page Number: 143
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 27 Quotes

I knew Phoebe was convinced that her mother was kidnapped because it was impossible for Phoebe to imagine that her mother could leave for any other reason. I wanted to call Phoebe and say that maybe her mother had gone looking for something, maybe her mother was unhappy, maybe there was nothing Phoebe could do about it.

When I told this part to Gram and Gramps, Gramps said, “You mean it had nothing to do with Peeby?” They looked at each other. They didn’t say anything, but there was something in that look that suggested I had just said something important. For the first time, it occurred to me that maybe my mother’s leaving had nothing whatsoever to do with me. It was separate and apart. We couldn’t own our mothers.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Gramps (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle, Gram, Phoebe Winterbottom, Mrs. Margaret Cadaver, Mrs. Winterbottom, The Lunatic/Mike Bickle
Page Number: 164
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 41 Quotes

“It’s not terrible,” my mother said. “It’s normal. She’s weaning them from her.”

“Does she have to do that? Why can’t they stay with her?”

“It isn’t good for her or for them. They have to become independent. What if something happened to Moody Blue? They wouldn’t know how to survive without her.”

While I prayed for Gram outside the hospital, I wondered if my mother’s trip to Idaho was like Moody Blue’s behavior. Maybe part of it was for my mother and part of it was for me.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle (speaker), Gram
Page Number: 245
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 44 Quotes

Lately, I’ve been wondering if there might be something hidden behind the fireplace, because just as the fireplace was behind the plaster wall and my mother’s story was behind Phoebe’s, I think there was a third story behind Phoebe’s and my mother’s, and that was about Gram and Gramps.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle, Dad, Gram, Gramps, Phoebe Winterbottom, Mrs. Winterbottom
Related Symbols: The Fireplace
Page Number: 254
Explanation and Analysis:
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Walk Two Moons PDF

Gram Quotes in Walk Two Moons

The Walk Two Moons quotes below are all either spoken by Gram or refer to Gram. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Judgment, Perspective, and Storytelling Theme Icon
).
Chapter 15 Quotes

My long hair floated all around me. My mother’s hair had been long and black, like mine, but a week before she left, she cut it. My father said to me, “Don’t cut yours, Sal. Please don’t cut yours.”

My mother said, “I knew you wouldn’t like it if I cut mine.”

My father said, “I didn’t say anything about yours.”

“But I know what you’re thinking,” she said.

“I loved your hair, Sugar,” he said.

I saved her hair. I swept it up from the kitchen floor and wrapped it in a plastic bag and hid it beneath the floorboards of my room. It was still there, along with the postcards she sent.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle (speaker), Dad (speaker), Gram, Gramps
Related Symbols: Hair
Page Number: 85
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 16 Quotes

The morning after my father learned that my mother was not coming back, he left for Lewiston, Idaho. Gram and Gramps came to stay with me. I had pleaded to go along, but my father said he didn’t think I should have to go through that. That day I climbed up into the maple and watched the singing tree, waiting for it to sing. I stayed there all day and on into the early evening. It did not sing.

At dusk, Gramps placed three sleeping bags at the foot of the tree, and he, Gram, and I slept there all night. The tree did not sing.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle, Dad, Gram, Gramps
Related Symbols: The Singing Tree
Page Number: 93
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 24 Quotes

“So you didn’t leave Gramps just because of the cussing?”

“Salamanca, I don’t even remember why I did that. Sometimes you know in your heart you love someone, but you have to go away before your head can figure it out.”

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Gram (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle, Dad, Gramps
Page Number: 143
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 27 Quotes

I knew Phoebe was convinced that her mother was kidnapped because it was impossible for Phoebe to imagine that her mother could leave for any other reason. I wanted to call Phoebe and say that maybe her mother had gone looking for something, maybe her mother was unhappy, maybe there was nothing Phoebe could do about it.

When I told this part to Gram and Gramps, Gramps said, “You mean it had nothing to do with Peeby?” They looked at each other. They didn’t say anything, but there was something in that look that suggested I had just said something important. For the first time, it occurred to me that maybe my mother’s leaving had nothing whatsoever to do with me. It was separate and apart. We couldn’t own our mothers.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Gramps (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle, Gram, Phoebe Winterbottom, Mrs. Margaret Cadaver, Mrs. Winterbottom, The Lunatic/Mike Bickle
Page Number: 164
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 41 Quotes

“It’s not terrible,” my mother said. “It’s normal. She’s weaning them from her.”

“Does she have to do that? Why can’t they stay with her?”

“It isn’t good for her or for them. They have to become independent. What if something happened to Moody Blue? They wouldn’t know how to survive without her.”

While I prayed for Gram outside the hospital, I wondered if my mother’s trip to Idaho was like Moody Blue’s behavior. Maybe part of it was for my mother and part of it was for me.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle (speaker), Gram
Page Number: 245
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 44 Quotes

Lately, I’ve been wondering if there might be something hidden behind the fireplace, because just as the fireplace was behind the plaster wall and my mother’s story was behind Phoebe’s, I think there was a third story behind Phoebe’s and my mother’s, and that was about Gram and Gramps.

Related Characters: Salamanca “Sal” Tree Hiddle (speaker), Momma/Chanhassen “Sugar” Hiddle, Dad, Gram, Gramps, Phoebe Winterbottom, Mrs. Winterbottom
Related Symbols: The Fireplace
Page Number: 254
Explanation and Analysis: