The View From Saturday

“The fact was that Mrs. Olinski did not know how she had chosen her team, and the further fact was that she didn't know that she didn't know until she did know.”

This quote is taken from the opening page of the book, and it follows a description of Mrs. Olinski as someone who always has good answers. Structurally, this quote summarizes the central arc of the story—which chronicles how Mrs. Olinski ultimately answers the question of how she chose her team and the journey she takes to get the answer.

“When I told Tilly that six steps seemed a lot to have to do before you begin, she said, ‘you must think of those six steps not as preparation for the beginning but as the beginning itself.’”

During his visit to Century Village and his time learning calligraphy with Tilly, Noah learns the importance of patience and selflessness, which serves him well when it comes one of the novel’s key themes: Respecting and Understanding Differences. Tilly’s lessons on appreciating the smaller, preparative moments in life as much as the big events play a critical role in Noah’s journey.

“Allen Diamondstein still lived in the real world because even though he was Izzy's child and even though he was full-grown, he was too young to live in Century Village. Fact: Allen Diamondstein was the most nervous human being I had ever seen in my entire life. Fact: His wife had left him. She had moved to Epiphany and taken a job with my father, who is the best dentist in town (fact).”

In Noah’s narration, Konigsburg employs specificity of narrative voice to accomplish both exposition and character development. Noah’s bullet-point way of thinking succinctly informs the reader about Nadia’s father Allen’s personality and background, as well as Noah’s family’s connection to Allen (and therefore Noah’s connection to Nadia), laying the groundwork for the following chapter about Nadia’s journey.