The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion

“No matter how many times Dena had tried to tell her, Sookie never understood what a great gal she was on her own. She had been one of the funniest and best-liked girls on campus, but she had never quite believed it.”

Sookie has low self-esteem at the start of the novel, largely because her mother always makes her feel like she has not lived up to her potential. Sookie’s struggle to see herself through her own eyes instead of Lenore’s reflects the Complicated Relationships Between Mothers and Daughters. By the end of the book, Sookie will come to recognize that she has many strengths, just as Dena asserts.

“I’m not myself. I’m just one big piece of plasma floating around in space…the Invisible Woman. Why couldn’t I have found all this out when I was young and still had a chance to change? Now it’s too late. I’m already formed. I’m just a second-banana kind of person, and I always will be.”

Sookie is panicked to learn that she’s not sure what her own personality is like, especially after planning her three daughters’ weddings and being an empty nester. Her journey throughout the novel helps her to take control of her life and feel proud of her identity.

“She had always thought that Lenore was hilarious and a lot of fun, but then she wasn’t her daughter. And with Lenore, everybody was a second banana.”

Those outside of her family are not the target of Lenore’s criticisms, and so they often love the lively older woman. However, because Sookie is her daughter, she frequently hears her mother’s complaints about everything, ranging from Sookie herself to the mayor. Sookie’s uneasy sense of being constantly in her mother’s shadow reflects Complicated Relationships Between Mothers and Daughters.

“As Lillian, the other wing walk had told her, ‘Honey, be careful. Once you get pregnant, your flying days are over.’”

Here, Lillian warns Fritzi against getting pregnant, as it will end her flying career. This comment reflects The US as a Land of Opportunity and Restriction, as women are expected to give up their flying careers after they have children—a restriction that does not apply to men who become fathers. The warning also foreshadows how Sophie will end up getting pregnant with Sookie while serving as a WASP.

“But that was Lenore: the bride at every wedding, corpse at every funeral.”

This quote helps to characterize what a big personality Lenore has. Throughout the novel, Sookie will learn that although Lenore is constantly the center of attention, others still notice her and are rooting for her to stand up to her mother.

“Just who the hell did they think they were fooling with?”

This comment refers to Japan’s decision to bomb Pearl Harbor, as the United States immediately enters the war. Doing so helps boost the Allies’ efforts, with the US ultimately dropping two bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in their offensive against Japan. The family’s shocked reaction to the Pearl Harbor attack invokes Navigating Fear and Fun at Home During Wartime.

“She’s the man of the house now.”

Linka makes this comment about Fritzi while Stanislaw is in the sanitarium for his tuberculosis treatment. It alludes to how Fritzi leads the effort to take charge of the filling station now that her father and brother are gone and shows how men are typically associated with such leadership. The war thus gives Fritzi a temporary opportunity to have more freedom as a woman, reflecting The US as a Land of Opportunity and Restriction.

“It was mind-boggling to think about just how random her life had really been.”

Sookie is very cognizant of how happenstance informed her childhood. She was not born into the Simmons family; she was chosen. Part of discovering who she is means coping with having two families and what that means in terms of her identity and sense of self.

“Women pilots…are a weapon waiting to be used.”

Eleanor Roosevelt supposedly makes this comment when the United States government initially refuses to enlist women pilots. An advocate for women, Roosevelt’s note emphasizes that women are just as capable as men. The resistance she faces in persuading the US to recruit female pilots reflects The US as a Land of Opportunity and Restriction.

“I know it’s a rough deal losing your pals, but you just enjoy every minute you have, and that’s an order.”

Billy reassures Fritzi after she expresses guilt over having fun, despite the fact that several women pilots have died. His “order” speaks to the theme of Navigating Fear and Fun at Home During Wartime, as fun helps to improve morale even though everyone knows that serving the government in the war effort can be dangerous.

“We don’t accept women in trousers.”

When a restaurant turns away Fritzi and their friends in uniform, Fritzi points out the sexism and hypocrisy of its decision. Many restaurants claim to respect those who serve, but that respect does not extend to women who wear “masculine” attire. Such gender discrimination speaks to The US as a Land of Opportunity and Restriction.

“They were not related by blood, but it really didn’t matter. They would always be brother and sister, no matter what.”

Buck forgot that Sookie was adopted, which shows how little her blood relation to him matters. Sookie is touched by this, and it quells her fear of being rejected by the only family she has ever known.

“Lenore could just as easily have picked out another little girl, or if she had even come a day later, she might have already been adopted by somebody else. She guessed it was just supposed to be.”

Sookie’s thought here does not account for Lenore’s love for her because she does not know that Lenore immediately fell in love with her as a baby. However, Sookie is grateful for the way fate brought them together, speaking to the theme of Complicated Relationships Between Mothers and Daughters. Even though she and Lenore do not always get along, she is happy that Lenore raised her.

“All of us in uniform get all the glory, but my hat’s off to all those guys and gals showing up day after day, working on an assembly line, doing their job. And you never hear a complaint.”

Growing up working at a filling station and working in a pickle factory makes Fritzi appreciate those on the assembly lines more than most. Her quote here shows how she never looks down on anyone, even if flying might be a more glamorous or obvious role to play in a country during wartime.

“Poppa always said this was the greatest country in the world, and now I see how right he is.”

Stanislaw Jurdabralinski believed in the US as the land of opportunity. Fritzi remembers how much it means to her father to live in the United States, and she feels a similar sense of pride in watching her country rally together as part of the war effort.

“And I don’t care what you say, it takes great courage to have four children and sit by and watch them make mistakes.”

Dee Dee’s statement to Sookie reveals how much Sookie has meant to her children, adding another dimension to Complicated Relationships Between Mothers and Daughters. Sookie’s low self-esteem has obscured the positive effect she has had on her children, and Dee Dee wants her mother to appreciate herself at last.

“It was a show-off kind of a thing. I was always such a damn show-off. If I had been thinking about her, instead of me, she might be alive today.”

Fritzi carries the guilt of Sophie’s death with her, even though it was her sister’s decision to join the WASPs. She’ll never know if she would have actually been able to deter her from joining.

“She was a lot more than Lenore Simmons’s daughter.”

With this statement, Sookie steps outside of the shadow of her mother’s personality. This is a major breakthrough in Sookie’s growth, as she claims her independence while navigating the reality of Complicated Relationships Between Mothers and Daughters.

“She began to see how being a female and growing up when she had, with so many restrictions, must have been very frustrating for her. If she had been allowed to go on the stage, she probably would have been a star.”

Learning about the WASPs also teaches Sookie about the societal and governmental restrictions placed upon women in the early and mid-20th century, invoking The US as a Land of Opportunity and Restriction. Her discovery inspires her to feel empathy toward her mother, as she knows Lenore wanted to do other things besides being a mother, but didn’t get the chance to achieve her dreams.

“That impossible woman had driven her crazy and caused her much heartbreak, and yet, despite it all, she would miss her every day for the rest of her life.”

The theme of Complicated Relationships Between Mothers and Daughters finds resolution in this statement, as Sookie both wrestles with her mother’s treatment of her and the deep love she nevertheless feels for Lenore. Finding this balance is important to her growth, as she needs to be her own person, but can still appreciate Lenore.

“She realized that thanks to Dr. Shapiro, she had learned that being a successful person is not necessarily defined by what you have achieved, but by what you have overcome. And she had overcome something that, for her, was huge.”

Sookie overcomes a lot in this novel, from discovering that she was adopted to working toward prioritizing herself and her own growth. Thinking about what she has overcome replaces the standard of achievement that Lenore pushed on her, and Sookie no longer feels like she hasn’t done anything in her life.

“And no, she wasn’t a leader in society, or a rich and famous ballerina, but her husband and her children loved her. And, really, what more could a person ask for?”

Sookie eventually finds fulfillment in having been a mother. She has always loved it, but Lenore made her feel like she should have done something more. It is Dee Dee who pushes her to recognize that she is a wonderful mother who is her children’s hero.

“And now she had a clue as to what it must have felt like, risking your life day after day, and not even being appreciated. No wonder some of the gals were bitter.”

Sookie sees how sexism still permeates society when at a museum that does not recognize the contribution of the WASPs to American aviation history. She is amazed that such discrimination still persists, especially knowing that her mother died in service of her country. The reality of ongoing sexism reflects The US as a Land of Opportunity and Restriction.