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Max
Greg is Fin’s father. He’s presented primarily as a selfish and headstrong individual, whose philandering caused Libby to leave him, and whose decision to follow Kara leaves his sons to fend for themselves in the crisis. Nevertheless, Fin and Max are eager to see him again and retain fond memories of him. They finally accept that he is probably dead.
Greg Quotes in The Sky So Heavy
The The Sky So Heavy quotes below are all either spoken by Greg or refer to Greg. 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:
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Chapter 3 Quotes
It’s funny how without something as simple as electricity it was completely useless – just a gaping, blank stare of black. Without electricity our house was a box of useless bits of moulded plastic and wiring.
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Chapter 6 Quotes
I wanted to tell him what I meant. I wanted to tell him what I knew about Dad, but that would mean destroying the picture he had of Dad. I couldn’t do it. I knew too much what it felt like to realise your father wasn’t the hero you thought he was. I knew it meant your childhood was over.
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Chapter 8 Quotes
I learned that if I could keep my thoughts about Dad focused on the afternoon when I found the letter from Mum, I could almost stem my anxiety about his absence. My anger formed a nice protective cushion. If I let it slide to the other things – those days when he would carry me up the hill on his back or my memory of him slipping me fifty-dollar notes under the table during childhood games of Monopoly – worry would fester in my gut and even though I was so, so hungry, I couldn’t eat.
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Chapter 16 Quotes
Mum had said not to go into the city, but I couldn’t imagine that everyone there had been left for as long as us without more rations. The thought that we might have been abandoned was beginning to follow me around and I couldn’t shake it. If Mum was still there she would have a plan. Leaving would mean letting go of the hope that Dad would come back for us.
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Chapter 26 Quotes
It’s what I already know and what I have avoided in my head ever since we came up with this plan. Trying to save yourself and your family isn’t crazy. People will try to hold on when their world starts to tilt, they will grab onto whatever is in reach. Doesn’t matter if it means throwing punches at your neighbour or pointing a gun at someone’s head.
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Chapter 28 Quotes
‘Hey, hey. You remember those bad bushfires in Victoria? Black Saturday? I read a story about a guy and his wife who were stranded in the fire. No way out. They had three little kids with them and they all hid with wet blankets over them in this gap between a brick wall and a water tank. The guy said the fear, the panic, was like a heavy medicine ball that he and his wife passed between them – when one panicked the other one would be calm and rational. They survived by taking it in turns. I can hold the ball for you, Max. I’ve got it. I’ve got you.’
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Greg Character Timeline in The Sky So Heavy
The timeline below shows where the character Greg appears in The Sky So Heavy. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2
...mother abruptly left his family two years ago, leaving behind a note for his father Greg explaining her decision. Fin found and read the note before his father got to it,...
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Chapter 3
Fin’s father Greg returns and has an apparent spat with Kara in the other room. The family then...
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Greg doesn’t return that night, and Fin’s attempts to text his friends and go online are...
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...and Max share a bleak dinner of leftover sausage, Fin tries to reassure Max about Greg, who still hasn’t returned home. He then asks Max to promise him that they will...
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Chapter 4
The days pass and begin to blur together, with still no sign of Greg. Fin and Max spend their time quietly indoors, eating from their reserves and playing cards....
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Chapter 6
...best to comfort him, but Max begins to cry, blaming himself and his outburst for Greg’s departure. Fin rejects this and explains that Greg is the parent and should have been...
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Chapter 7
...and put chains on his tires, and driven over. Lokey quickly suggests that they sample Greg’s liquor cabinet. Reluctant at first, Fin soon relents and even picks out Greg’s most expensive...
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Chapter 8
...in boredom and anxiety about their father. Fin finds that focusing on negative memories of Greg rather than positive ones makes his absence easier to bear.
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Chapter 9
...“CSI,” returns to the door by himself. He tells Fin that he believes they’ve located Greg. Fin is thrilled, but the officer tells him and Max that he still needs to...
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Chapter 10
...one there. He and Max run out of wood and begin burning Kara’s magazines and Greg’s books. Fin resolves to eat on alternate days to preserve supplies.
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Chapter 18
...leave the house. On his way out, CSI comments that in fact they have found Greg: in the morgue. Fin tries to reassure Max that the cop was lying, but Max...
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Chapter 40
...there. Half-asleep the next morning, Fin imagines he sees the faces of Arnold, Alan, and Greg. Effrez gives them a hearty goodbye, and they drive off. Leaving the city, they notice...
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