"What letters do you see backward?” “Well, O, I, T, A, M, V, X, U . . . and some others.”
When Ally is bullied at school for having dyslexia her friend Albert sticks up for her. His reputation as being the smartest kid in class makes the bully, Shay, back down after he says that he too reads some letters backwards just like Ally does. The irony of this is that these letters are symmetrical and are therefore the same either way, which Shay does not pick up on but still allows Albert to stick up for his friend while still telling the truth.
"Everyone is smart in different ways. But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life thinking that it’s stupid.”
This perfectly reflects Ally's life because due to her dyslexia reading has always been a struggle for her. People talk down to her and she feels insecure due to the fact that she has a hard time reading. Despite this, she is very good at math and can do complicated calculations without batting an eye. While being good at one thing and having trouble with another subject has been a cause of unhappiness in her life, this quote she heads by Albert Einstein lets her know that even though she feels like she is stupid for not being able to read, she is good at other things and that she is just as good as everyone else.
"Whenever I do my best, they tell me I don't try hard enough.”
In English, the coursework is often too hard for Ally due to her dyslexia, and even when she tries her hardest, the teachers believe that she didn't try at all. This leads to the ongoing pattern of misbehavior Ally displays in order to deflect from the fact that she can't read.
