Saving Shiloh

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of animal cruelty and death.

Basking in their fame, Marty and David receive more Valentine’s Day cards than any of the boys in their class. On the bus ride home, Dara Lynn surprises Marty by sharing half of her chocolate bar with him. Marty marvels at Dara Lynn’s uncharacteristic kindness, thinking, “[I]f I live to be a hundred, I will never understand my sister” (100). Marty points out to Fred that he had been accusing Judd for no reason.

Sarah asks Marty why he insists on sticking up for Judd considering the way he used to treat Shiloh. She challenges Marty to name “one good thing” that Judd has done (101), and Marty cites the time that Judd dug everyone out of the blizzard. As he tries to think of more examples, Marty realizes that he is thinking of things that Judd has not done lately, such as drinking and driving, rather than any kind act he has done. That night at dinner, Marty laments to his father that he wishes there were a way for him to encourage the community to like Judd. His father reminds him that he cannot make people like someone.