“But Alec was a special case. Every time he had landed in the Hot Seat, he had been caught doing something that teachers usually liked: reading. It wasn’t about what he was reading or how he was reading—it was always because of where and when he was reading.”

This quote introduces Alec’s tendency to read in class and shows how it has impacted his time at school throughout the years by getting him in regular trouble. This quote characterizes Alec by showing not only his passion for reading, but also his struggle to stop reading when he’s not supposed to read. Alec’s struggle to balance his desire to read with the necessity of schoolwork will form one of the main conflicts in the novel.

“The room was darkened so everyone could see the screen, and about two minutes into her talk, Alec switched off his ears and started thinking about The High King.”

Here, after a day of working hard to stay focused in class, Alec finds himself unable to keep his brain from wandering to his current book. This quote illustrates the difficulties Alec faces when grappling with his love for reading and his need to pay attention in school.

“Alec didn’t really want to be in a club either…and he really didn’t want to start one. To have to get an activity organized and then keep it going, day after day? That sounded horrible.”

This quote explains why Alec is initially apprehensive about starting a club. The concerns Alec expresses here foreshadow the responsibility Alec owes to the Losers Club later on as it grows to be bigger than he expected. This quote also explains why Alec chose the name Losers Club: He doesn’t want to be responsible for a group of people. However, founding a club is the first important step in Alec’s character arc, as it will help him gain confidence and maturity.