Chapter 43: During the summer after graduation, Francie and Neeley both get jobs. Francie begins to work at a factory, where she makes tissue flowers all day. At the end of their week working, Francie and Neeley stop at the bank to change their wages into brand-new dollar bills. Katie is overcome with tears when the children give her their earnings, and she goes into the bedroom so they will not see her cry.
Chapter 44: Francie's work at the factory is seasonal and she is laid off. Francie wants to work in an office but needs to be 16 to do so. After she buys more grown-up clothing and puts her braids up, Francie looks old enough to pass for 16, even though she is only 14. She gets a job as a reader at the Model Press Clipping Bureau in Manhattan.
Francie is very good at her job and is given a large raise. Francie does not want to tell her mother about the raise, since she assumes quite correctly that her mother will want her to keep working instead of returning to school. Francie wants to begin high school in the fall, but Katie decides that one of the children will need to work. Even though Neeley does not want to go to high school, Katie decides that he is the one who will attend school. She reasons that Francie loves school so much that she will find a way to continue her education, but Neeley will make no effort. Accordingly, he must be forced to attend school. This decision results in a serious family fight, but in the end, Katie forces everyone to do as she wants.
Chapter 45: It is Christmas again and one year since Johnny's death. Because of Francie's job, the family has the money to celebrate the holiday this year. At Christmas services at church, Francie is once again accepting of God and her Catholic religion. They all join in saying a prayer for Johnny's soul.
