Graffiti features throughout the book because of its prominence at the school and around Holyoke. Graffiti signals that the area is not necessarily safe or that it is rundown. The author describes how the graffiti changes to show the mood in the book, describing the graffiti getting particularly bad during the colder months when the students are also most restless, and everyone feels slightly depressed. Mention of the graffiti has a humorous tone in the Spring, as everyone becomes more optimistic and embraces new possibilities. It is still graffiti on the school, and it is largely seen as making the school look shabby. However, the graffiti is part of the town and a living and changing depiction of the mood of the book. Whether the graffiti is positive or not, the author describes it in a way to set the tone and remind everyone that this school is in an old, declining industrial town. 

Religious life is a central element of Holyoke, with most students and teachers attending church regularly. The churches are a symbol of the different groups in the town, with what church someone attends indicating their social group. The Puerto Ricans have their own churches, mostly because they couldn’t find any that held services in Spanish when they first arrived, and the Irish families have their own set of churches.