Knots in My Yo-Yo String Quotes

“Early on I learned, without anyone actually telling me, that in this world it is not enough just to be. You have to be something.”
― Jerry Spinelli, Knots in My Yo-Yo String: The Autobiography of a Kid

“Good Boy: Just because he doesn't get into trouble doesn't mean he doesn't appreciate trouble.”
― Jerry Spinelli, Knots in My Yo-Yo String: The Autobiography of a Kid

“I resolved that if I was ever in a war, I would be a dumb nonspy.”
― Jerry Spinelli, Knots in My Yo-Yo String: The Autobiography of a Kid

“War became less about machine-gun chatter and spectacular explosions and more about people.”
― Jerry Spinelli, Knots in My Yo-Yo String: The Autobiography of a Kid

“We were pretending, and everybody knew you didn't get hurt pretending.”
― Jerry Spinelli, Knots in My Yo-Yo String: The Autobiography of a Kid

“So many careers came and went through me:
salamander finder, crawfish annoyer, flat-stone creek skipper, cedar chest smeller, railroad car counter, tin can stomper, milkweed blower, mulberry picker, snowball smoother, paper bag popper, steel rail walker, box turtle toucher, dark-sky watcher, best part saver. They didn’t last long, these careers of mine, but flashed into and out of existence like mayflies. But while they employed me, I gave them an honest minute’s work and was paid in the satisfactions of curiosity met and a job well done.”
― Jerry Spinelli, Knots in My Yo-Yo String: The Autobiography of a Kid