“You sit down,” my mama said, “and I’ll fix your plate.” “You don’t have to fix me anything,” I said, pouting. “It’ll be the same food I’ve cooked for your daddy.” “I don’t want it.” —The Land, Mildred D. Taylor


Why doesn’t Paul want the food his mother cooked?
He is not hungry.
He does not think it is as good as the food his brother and father are eating.
The problem is not the food, it is where he gets to eat it.
He thinks his father should be the one to make him dinner.