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What Makes A Girl A Girl? What Makes A Guy A Guy? Do You Have To Be What They Want You To Be? Or Do You Stop And Listen To That Voice Inside You? I Know Who I Am. I'm Petra West. And I'm A Girl. You Want Me To Sleep Somewhere Else, Fine. Whatever. But I'm Not Going To Pretend To Be Somebody I'm Not. I've Done Enough Of That.

-Libba Bray

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What Makes A Girl

Libba Bray

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What Makes A Girl A Girl? What Makes A Guy A Guy? Do You Have To Be What They Want You To Be? Or Do You Stop And Listen To That Voice Inside You? I Know Who I Am. I'm Petra West. And I'm A Girl. You Want Me To Sleep Somewhere Else, Fine. Whatever. But I'm Not Going To Pretend To Be Somebody I'm Not. I've Done Enough Of That.

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The Key Holds The Truth

In Every End, There Is Also A Beginning.

There Is A Time In Every Life When Paths Are Chosen, Character Is Forged. I Could Have Chosen A Different Path. But I Didn’t. I Failed Myself.

As One, They Leap, Laughing, And That Is Where We Leave Them - Mouths Open, Arms Spread Wide, Fingers Splayed To Take In The Whole World, Bodies Flying High In Defiance Of Gravity, As If They Will Never Fall.

Did You Hear? You Are Free." Yessss. Choice. It Is A Fine Thing. And I Choose To Take You Back, Most High.

...i Took Advanced Powerpoint Last Semester. You Guys Are Always Misunderestimating Me. I'm Totally Ready To Handle The Big Stuff.

Harold Brodie Is A Louse And A Lothario Who Cheats At Cards And Has A Different Girl In His Rumble Seat Every Week. That Coupe Of His Is Pos-i-tute-ly A Petting Palace. And He’s A Terrible Kisser To Boot.” Evie’s Parents Stared In Stunned Silence. “or So I’ve Heard.

They Would Place Their Hands Together Inside The Circle So That They Could Walk In Each Other's Dreams. It Forged A Bond That Could Not Be Broken. The Circle Represents Love In Eternity. For There Is No Beginning And No End.

I Shan't Ever Understand Your Willingness To Lie Down And Die," Felicity Bars. "if You Won't At Least Try To Fight, I Have No Sympathy For You.

I've Heard It Said That God Is In The Details. It's The Same With The Truth. Leave Out The Details, The Crucial Heart, And You Can Damn Someone With The Bare Bones Of It.

Judge Not, Lest Ye Be Judged.

Taylor Clapped Three Times For Attention. "ladies! Ladies! My Stars! That's Enough. Now. We All Know Miss Arkansas's Girls Are Fake, Miss Ohio's Easier Than Making Cereal, And Miss Montana's Dress Is Something My Blind Meemaw Would Wear To Bingo Night." - "beauty Queens

We Have Work To Do If You Are Not To Be A Total Failure Like High-waisted, Acid-wash Jeans.

We're Comfortable With Women In Certain Roles But Not Comfortable With Women Expressing Anger Or Fully Accepting Their Power. The Most Daring Question A Woman Can Ask Is, 'what Do I Want?'

...dreams Were Dreams And Reality Was Reality And She Felt People Were Better Off Understanding The Difference.

Oh, Sure. Of Course, They Say Now That We’ve Got Freud And The Motorcar, God Is Dead.” “he’s Not Dead; Just Very Tired.

I'm Going To Eviscerate You And Leave Your Organs On A Pike In The Yard As A Warning To Those Who Wear Large Jewelry.

Sometimes We Seek That Which We Are Not Yet Ready To Find.

Memphis Found His Smile. 'you Know Me, Sir. I Don't Wear Worry.

On The Bowery, In The Ornate Carcass Of A Formerly Grand Vaudeville Theater, A Dance Marathon Limps Along. The Contestants, Young Girls And Their Fellas, Hold One Another Up, Determined To Make Their Mark, To Bite Back At The Dreams Sold To Them In Newspaper Advertisements And On The Radio. They Have Sores On Their Feet But Stars In Their Eyes.

Helloooo." Miss Ohio Rolled Her Eyes. "i'm From The Buckeye State. We Are Serious About Our Tailgating Parties. I Can Turn Anything Into A Grill.

There’s A Moment Of Profound Sadness That Can Be Dispelled Only By Summoning My Anger.

There Was Something About The Island That Made The Girls Forget Who They Had Been. All Those Rules And Shalt Nots. They Were No Longer Waiting For Some Arbitrary Grade. They Were No Longer Performing. Waiting. Hoping. They Were Becoming. They Were.

I'll Try To Communicate, Taylor Said. She Spoke Slowly And Deliberately. Hello! We Need Help. Is Your Village Close? My Village Is Denver. And I Think It's A Long Way From Here. I'm Nicole Ade. Miss Colorado. We Have A Colorado Where We're From Too! Tiara Said. She Swiveled Her Hips, Spread Her Arms Wide, Then Brought Her Hands Together Prayer-style And Bowed. Kipa Aloha. Nicole Stared. I Speak English. I'm American. Also, Did You Learn Those Moves From Barbie's Hawaiian Vacation Dvd? Ohmigosh, Yes! Do Your People Have That, Too?

We're Still Expected To Color Within The Lines Of Accepted Femininity, And Women Who Step Out Of Those Lines Are Usually Attacked, Whether Verbally Or Physically.

Libraries Are The Torch Of The World, Illuminating The Path When It Feels Too Dark To See. We Mustn't Allow That Torch To Be Extinguished.

I'm An Oddity Of One, My Strangeness Too Complicated To Explain Or Share.

Our Mouths And Bodies Speak For Us In A New Language As The Trees Shake Loose A Rain Of Petals That Stick To Our Slickness Like Skins We Will Wear Forever. And Just Like That, I Am Changed.

On Tv, Talking Heads Wrung Their Hands Over A Lack Of Traditional Feminine Values And Wondered If Girls’ Sports Were To Blame. Then They Cut To A Commercial Featuring A Sexy College Coed Vacuuming Her Dorm Room In Her Underwear.

Evie Replied With An Eye-roll. “do You Think You Can Manage To Not Steal Anything While I’m Gone?” “the Only Thing I’m Trying To Steal Is Your Heart, Doll.” Sam Smirked. “you’re Not That Talented A Thief, Sam Lloyd.

I'm Just Saying It's Not All Sand Castles And Ninjas.

And When It Comes, Her Kiss Is Like Something Not So Much Felt As Found.

We've Left The Moment. It's Gone. We're Somewhere Else Now, And That's Okay. We've Still Got That Moment With Us Somewhere, Deep In Our Memory, Seeping Into Our Dna. And When Our Cells Get Scattered , Whenever That Happens, This Moment Will Still Exist In Them. Those Cells Might Be The Biulding Block Of Something New. A Planet Or Star Or A Sunflower, A Baby. Maybe Even A Cockroach. Who Knows? Whatever It Is, It'll Be A Part Of Us, This Thing Right Here And Now, And We'll Be A Part Of It.

Reminds Us That Greatness Lies Even In The Smallest Of Moments, In The Humblest Of Hearts, And We Shall, Each Of Us, Be Called To Greatness. Whether We Shall Rise To Meet It Or Let It Slip Away Is The Challenge Put Before Us All.

But The Past Cannot Be Changed, And We Carry Our Choices With Us, Forward, Into The Unknown. We Can Only Move On.

What Did I Do To Make Mommy Leave?” “you Didn’t Do Anything. This Isn’t Your Fault.” “then Why?” She’d Wailed. “i Don’t Know,” Her Daddy Had Said, And He Looked So Sad. “it Isn’t Fair!” “no, It Isn’t, Baby. Not By A Mile. The World’s Only As Fair As You Can Make It. Takes A Lot Of Fight. A Lot Of Fight. But If You Stay In Here, In Your Own Little Cave, That’s One Less Fighter On The Side Of Fair.

He Wanted To Hit Something Or Someone. He Wanted To Burn Up The Whole World, Heal It, And Burn It Down Again.

He Said To Tell You To Remember Your Heart In All Things, That It Is Where Your Honor And Your Destiny Will Be Found. Does It Mean Anything To You?' It Is Something He Would Say From Time To Time-that The Eye Could Be Misled, But That The Heart Was True.

Will You Punish Me Forever?

And For A Moment, I Understand That I Have Friends On This Lonely Path; That Sometimes Your Place Is Not Something You Find, But Something You Have When You Need It.

Theta Blew Out Another Plume Of Cigarette Smoke. “not Interested. Love’s Messy, Kiddo. Let Those Other Girls Get Moony-eyed And Goofy. Me? I Got Plans.

Cigarette Smoke

The Uncertainty Of Our Future Is Nothing More Than A Fog Of Breath On A Windowpane.

But If We Are To Remain A Great Empire, We Must Have A Greater Understanding Of The Hearts And Minds Of Others.

Agent Jones Switched To The Big Screen And A Grainy Video Of Momo Sitting At His Enormous Desk, A Swivel-hipped Elvis Clock Ticking Behind His Bewigged Head. 'death To The Capitalist Pigs! Death To Your Cinnamon Bun-smelling Malls! Death To Your Power Walking And Automatic Car Windows And I'm With Stupid T-shirts! The Republic Of Chacha Will Never Bend To Your Side-of-fries -drive -through-please-oh-would-you-like-ketchup-with-that Corruption! Momo B. Chacha Defies You And All You Stand For, And One Day, You Will Crumble Into The Sea And We Will Pick Up The Pieces And Make Them Into Sand Art.

The Dark Does Not Weep For Itself Because There Is No Light. Rather, It Accepts That It Is The Dark.

She Is The Elephant’s Eyebrows,” Evie Whispered Appreciatively. “those Jewels! How Her Neck Must Ache.” “that’s Why Bayer Makes Aspirin,” Mabel Whispered Back, And Evie Smiled, Knowing That Even A Socialist Wasn’t Immune To The Dazzle Of A Movie Star.

Any Book That Can Help You Survive The Slings And Arrows Of Adolescence Is A Book To Love For Life; 'the Catcher In The Rye' Did Just That, And I Still Do Love It.

There Were Few Things Worse Than Being Ordinary, In Evie’s Opinion. Ordinary Was For Suckers.

Maybe That's What Real Friendship Is -- Getting So Used To People That You Need To Be Annoyed By Them.

You Have A Steady Fella?” Sam Asked After A Bit. “no Fella Can Hold Me For Long.” Sam Gave Her A Sideways Glance. “that A Challenge?” “no. A Statement Of Fact.

Taylor Clapped For Attention. “miss New Mexico, Let’s Not Get All Down In The Bummer Basement Where The Creepy Things Live. There Are People In Heathen China Who Don’t Even Have Airline Trays. We Have A Lot To Be Grateful For.

But What Was The Point Of Living So Quietly You Made No Noise At All?

Jericho Lay Back Down On His Side, Watching Her Breathe Just An Arm's Length From Him. She Was Not Beautiful While She Slept; Her Mouth Hung Open And She Snored Very Lightly, And This, Despite Everything That Had Happened, Made Him Smile.

My Personal Motto Is: Wwwwd?: What Would Wonder Woman Do?

The Wolf Was At The Door. His Shadow Spilled Into The Room, Taking It Over.

The Man In The Shop Peered Disapprovingly At Evie Through The Glass. She Pumped Her Arms And Legs Up And Down In Imitation Of A Marching Band, Gave The Man A Salute, And Continued Her Meandering Walk To The Museum.

Ain't That A Sight? With All The Things We Know And Learn, We Still Ain't Touched The Big Mysteries -- Where We Come From, Where We Go Next, Why We Even Her. And When Something Truly Miraculous Happens, We Run And Hide In Our Caves. We Deny.

I Think About Dying Every Day, Because I Can't Stop Thinking About Living.

Do You Think They Missed Him Terribly When He Fell? Did God Cry Over His Lost Angel, I Wonder?

As A Kid, I Imagined Lots Of Different Scenarios For My Life. I Would Be An Astronaut. Maybe A Cartoonist. A Famous Explorer Or Rock Star. Never Once Did I See Myself Standing Under The Window Of A House Belonging To Some Druggie Named Carbine, Waiting For His Yard Gnome To Steal His Stash So I Could Get A Cab Back To A Cheap Motel Where My Friend, A Neurotic, Death-obsessed Dwarf, Was Waiting For Me So We Could Get On The Road To An Undefined Place And A Mysterious Dr. X, Who Would Cure Me Of Mad Cow Disease And Stop A Band Of Dark Energy From Destroying The Universe.

Because It Is Morning, It Is Morning, And There Is So Much To See.

You Can Never Know About About Your Own Destiny: Are The People You Meet There To Play A Part On Your Oun Destiny, Or Do You Exist Just To Play A Role In Theirs?

No, I Call. Come Back. I'm Here, He Says. But I Can't See. It's Too Bright. You Can't Hold Back The Light, Gemma. I'm Here. Trust Me.

I'm Sorry,' He Says Simply. 'people Make Mistakes, Gemma. We Take The Wrong Action For The Right Reasons, And The Right Action For The Wrong Reasons.

Naughty John, Naughty John, Does His Work With His Apron On. Cuts Your Throat And Takes Your Bones, Sells 'em Off For A Coupla Stones.

Sometimes I See Things, I Think. Out Of The Corner Of My Eye, Taunting Me, And Then It’s Gone. And Dreams. Such Horrible Dreams. What If Something Terrible Happened To Me? What If I Am Damaged?" The Rain Is A Cool Kiss On My Sleeve As I Link My Arm With Hers. "we’re All Damaged Somehow.

Life Don’t Come To You, Memphis. You Gotta Take It. We Have To Take It. Because Ain’t Nobody Handing It To Us.

No Person Has Ever Held All The Power. There Must Be A Balance Between Chaos And Order, Dark And Light. With The Temple Magic Bound To You, The Realms Are No Longer In Balance. The Power Could Change You... And You Could Change The Magic.

I Am For Hockey. I Find I Should Like To Hit Something With A Stick. -gemma Doyle Trilogy

"promise. Don't Misunderstand Me-you Are Quite Vexing." He Touches His Tender Jaw. "and You Hit Like A Man. But You Didn't Cause His Illness. That Is His Doing."

We Sit And Listen And Are Enthralled Anew, For Good Stories, It Seems, Never Lose Their Magic.

What Do You Feel? I’ve Never Been Asked This Question Once. None Of Us Has. We Aren’t Supposed To Feel. We’re British.

It's Always Darkest Before The Ultimate Sparkle.

It's Knowing I'll Never Have What She Has--a Beauty So Powerful It Brings Things To You. I Fear I Will Always Have To Chase Things I Want. I'll Always Have To Wonder Whether I'm Truly Wanted Or Whether I've Just Been Settled For.

You Want To Know What Pain Is? Try Running Out Of Advil When You've Got A Category Five Period. I've Had Cramps That Would Make Grown Men Beg For A Bullet Between The Eyes." - Jennifer, "beauty Queens

All Things Are Possible.

I’m Not Interested In Being Polite. It’s False.

I Will Never, Ever Drink Whiskey Again. From Now On, It's Strictly Sherry.

Might. Is There Any Opiate More Powerful Than That Word?

There Are Always Rebels And Radicals, I Suppose,' Mccleethy Allows. 'those Who Live On The Fringes Of Society. But What Do They Contribute To The Society Itself? They Reap Its Rewards Without Experiencing Its Costs. No. I Submit That Loyal, Hardworking Citizens Who Push Aside Their Own Selfish Desires For The Good Of The Whole Are The Backbone Of The World. What If We All Decided To Run Off And Live Freely Without Thought Or Care For Society's Rules? Our Civilization Would Crumble. There Is A Joy In Duty And A Security In Knowing One's Place...it Is The Only Way.

They See Her Differently Now, As Somebody. And Isn't That What Everyone Wants? To Be Seen?

They Kept The Lie Going, And The People Loved It.

He Took Comfort In The Neon Signs, The Wild Strands Of Jazz Creeping Out Of Clubs Whenever Happy Swells Of People Pushed Through The Doors In Their Finery.

We All Walk In A Land Of Dreams. For What Are We But Atoms And Hope, A Handful Of Stardust And Sinew? We Are Weary Travelers Trying To Find Our Way Home On A Road That Never Ends. Am I A Part Of Your Dream? Or Are You But A Part Of Mine?

If This Were A Movie, I Would Bust A Secret Move So Fierce The Entire Place Would Be Razed To The Ground. I'd Finish With Something Snappy Like "and Don't Forget My Soda, Punk" While I Strolled Off Into The Night.

Agent Jones Held Sinjin’s Face In His Hands. “i’m Going To Make Balloon Animals. People Need Balloon Animals.” “how Right You Are, Strange Delusional Man,” Sinjin Said.

She Shrieks Above The Din. "if You Wish A Battle, I Shall Give It. I Am The Last Of My Kind. I Shall Not Lie Down Without A Fight.

God Doesn't Like Lesbians," Grandma Huberman Hised, Throwing The Magazine In The Trash. Jennifer Knew What Lesbian Meant, And She Knew She Probably Was One. But She Couldn't Understand Why God Would Hold That Against Her Or Against Monica Mathers, Who'd Never Started A War Or Killed Anybody, And Whose Deadeye Three-pointers Were Straight-up Amazing. After All, Hadn't God Made Both Of Them? But People Were Like That, She'd Noticed. They'd Invoke Godly Privilege At The Weirdest Of Times And For The Most Stupid Reasons.

Pastoralia By George Saunders. Possibly My Favorite Book. Its One Of The Weirdest Books Ive Ever Read. If Monty Python And Thomas Pynchon Had A Love Child, And It Was Raised By Frank Zappa On A Weird Commune, That Would Be This Book.

People Aren't Always What You Want Them To Be

I Do Not Want To Pass The Time. I Want To Grab Hold Of It And Leave My Mark Upon The World.

No One Can Live In The Light All The Time.

But We Can't Go Back. We Can Only Go Forward.

When I Dream, I Dream Of Him.

There In The City's Steam-and-smoke-smudged Harbor Is The Most Extraordinary Sight Of All: A Great Copper-clad Lady With A Torch In One Hand And A Book In The Other. It Is Not A Statesman Or A God Or A War Hero Who Welcomes Us To This New World. It Is But An Ordinary Woman Lighting The Way- A Lady Offering Us The Liberty To Pursue Our Dreams If We've The Courage To Begin.

But...you Could Have Whatever You Wished." "exactly," He Says, Nuzzling My Neck. "but," I Say, "you Could Turn Stones To Rubies Or Ride In A Fine Gentleman's Carriage." Kartik Puts His Hands On Either Side Of My Face. "to Each His Own Magic," He Says And Kisses Me Again.

Hi. I’m From Arkansas, The Cantaloupe State. And Tonight, I Hope You Will Hold My Melons Close To Your Heart And Vote Me Your Miss Teen Dream.

Things Aren't Good Or Bad In And Of Themselves. It's What We Do With Them That Makes Them So.

But Sons Are A Different Matter To A Man. More A Duty Than An Indulgence.

He Told Me That Once, In The War, He’d Come Upon A German Soldier In The Grass With His Insides Falling Out; He Was Just Lying There In Agony. The Soldier Had Looked Up At Sergeant Leonard, And Even Though They Didn’t Speak The Same Language, They Understood Each Other With Just A Look. The German Lying On The Ground; The American Standing Over Him. He Put A Bullet In The Soldier’s Head. He Didn’t Do It With Anger, As An Enemy, But As A Fellow Man, One Soldier Helping Another.

Wanna Rock You, Girl, With A Butterfly Tunic. / No, I'm Not Gay, I'm Just Your Emo Enuch. / Gonna Smile Real Shy, Won't Cop A Feel, / 'cause I'm Your Virgin Crush, Your Supersafe Deal. / Let Those Other Guys Keep Sexing. / You And Me, We Be Texting / 'bout Unicorns And Rainbows And Our Perfect Love. / Girl, We Fit Together Like A Hand In A Glove. / Now I Don't Mean That Nasty, Tell Your Mum Don't Get Mad. / I Even Wrote 'you're Awesome' On Your Maxi Pads.

My Dad Was A Presbyterian Minister. Yes, I Am One Of Those Dreaded P.k.s - Preachers Kids. Be Afraid.

Please, I'm A Transgender Former Boy-bander. You Think I Don't Know How To Defend Myself?

We Create The Illusions We Need To Go On. And One Day, When They No Longer Dazzle Or Comfort, We Tear Them Down, Brick By Glittering Brick, Until We Are Left With Nothing But The Bright Light Of Honesty. The Light Is Liberating. Necessary. Terrifying. We Stand Naked And Emptied Before It. And When It Is Too Much For Our Eyes To Take, We Build A New Illusion To Shield Us From Its Relentless Truth.

The World Is Only As Fair As You Can Make It. Takes A Lot Of Fight. A Lot Of Fight. But If You Stay In Here, In Your Little Cave, That's One Less Fighter On The Side Of Fair.

The Corporation Would Like To Apologize For The Preceding Pages. Of Course, It's Not All Right For Girls To Behave This Way. Sexuality Is Not Meant To Be This Way - An Honest, Consensual Expression In Which A Girl Might Take An Active Role When She Feels Good And Ready And Not One Minute Before. No. Sexual Desire Is Meant To Sell Soap. And Cars. And Beer. And Religion.

Clothing Left On The Bed Unfolded. Books Stained With Coffee Spots. Tabs Not Paid Until The Last Possible Second. Boys Kissed And Then Forgotten In A Week’s Time.

Can We Really Conquer Chaos So Easily? If That Were So, I Should Be Able To Prune The Pandemonium Of My Own Soul Into Something Neat And Tidy Rather Than This Maze Of Wants And Needs And Misgivings That Has Me Forever Feeling As If I Cannot Fit Into The Landscape Of Things.

My Cholera's Acting Up Again.

I Knew It. You’re An Alien,” Said Her Former Best Friend, The Pale, Bespectacled Creature With The Spectacular Cleavage. “yes, I’m An Alien And I Still Made Cheerleader. And Now I’m Going To Steal Your Boyfriend To Prove Girls Can’t Really Be Friends.” “i Sat Back Timidly When You Torched My House, Killed My Parents, And Ate My Dog. But Now You’re Stealing My Boyfriend? That’s A Step Too Far!

When The Music Is Over, She Keeps Her Head Down Till She Finds Her Seat Again, And I Wonder How Many Times Each Day She Dies A Little.

When She Can't Bring Me To Heal With Scolding, She Bends Me To Shape With Guilt.

People Have A Habit Of Inventing Fictions They Will Believe Wholeheartedly In Order To Ignore The Truth They Cannot Accept.

There Are No Wrong Decisions ― Only Different Ones.

Felicity And I Watch The Dancers Moving As One. They Spin About Like The Earth On It's Axis, Enduring The Dark, Waiting For The Sun.

All The Small, Simple, Conscious Acts Of Living A Sudden Defense Against The Dying We Do Every Day.

Oh, Hello," Dr. M Says, Shaking Balder's Hand. "wonderful Costume. I'm A Bit Of A Role Player Myself On The Weekends. Tell Me, Where Did You Get The Helmet?" It Was Forged In The North, Blessed By The Hands Of Odin, Given To Me By My Mother, Frigg," Balder Answers. Lovely. I Got Mine On The Internet.

Who But The Mad Would Choose To Keep On Living? In The End, Aren't We All Just A Little Crazy?

I Changed The World; The World Changed Me. Everything You Do Comes Back To You. When You Affect A Situation, You Are Also Affected.

Felicity Ignores Us. She Walks Out To Them, An Apparition In White And Blue Velvet, Her Head Held High As They Stare In Awe At Her, The Goddess. I Don't Know Yet What Power Feels Like. But This Is Surely What It Looks Like, And I Think I'm Beginning To Understand Why Those Ancient Women Had To Hide In Caves. Why Our Parents And Suitors Want Us To Behave Properly And Predictably. It's Not That They Want To Protect Us; It's That They Fear Us.

Oh, I've A Love, A True, True Love, Who Waits Upon Yon Shore... And If My Love Won't Be My Love, Then I Will Live No More.

We're All Strangers Connected By What We Reveal, What We Share, What We Take Away--our Stories. I Guess That's What I Love About Books--they Are Thin Strands Of Humanity That Tether Us To One Another For A Small Bit Of Time, That Make Us Feel Less Alone Or Even More Comfortable With Our Aloneness, If Need Be.

You Don't Know Me, Dude," He Says, Not Smiling This Time. Gonzo Examines His Cards, Prepping For His Next Move. "people Always Think That They Know Other People, But They Don't. Not Really. I Mean, Maybe They Know Things About Them, Like They Won't Eat Doughnuts Or They Like Action Movies Or Whatever. But They Don't Know What Their Friends Do In Their Rooms Alone At Night Or What Happened To Them When They Were Kids Or If They Feel ****ed Up For No Reason At All.

All Morning, Spence Has Been A Well-oiled Machine Of Activity. Everyone Doing Her Bit, Quietly And Efficiently. It's Strange How Deliberate People Are After A Death. All The Indecision Suddenly Vanishes Into Clear, Defined Moments--changing The Linens, Choosing A Dress Or A Hymn, The Washing Up, The Muttering Of Prayers. All The Small, Simple, Conscious Acts Of Living A Sudden Defense Against The Dying We Do Every Day.

...because Really, Sometimes The Irony Gods Just Get Drunk.

A Man Bumps Me On His Busy Way Without So Much As An Apology. But That Is All Right. I Forgive You, Busy Man About Town With The Sharp Elbows. Hail And Farewell To You! For I, Gemma Doyle, Am To Have A Splendid Christmas In London Town. All Shall Be Well. God Rest Us Merry Gentlemen. And Gentlewomen.

...i Do Have To Wonder What Sort Of Childhood The Grimm Brothers Endured. They Are Not A Merry Bunch Of Storytellers, What With Their Children Roasted By Witches, Maidens Poisoned By Old Crones, And Whatnot.

Gonzo Narrows His Eyes. 'how Often Do You Clean That Thing?' 'every Night,' The Waitress Answers. Her Smile Is Strained. 'that's It? Do You Know How Long It Takes For Listeria To Grow Under Those Hot Lamps, Even With Ice?' Here We Go. 'it Can Happen In Just Five Hours. Five Hours And You've Got The Salad Bar Of Death!' The Waitress Looks Confused. 'from Listerine?

If God Has Nothing Better To Do Than Punish Schoolgirls For A Bit Of Tomfoolery, Then I've No Use For God.

Who The Heck Is Don Quick-oats?

I Know Because I Read...your Mind Is Not A Cage. It's A Garden. And It Requires Cultivating.

There Are Times When I Wish I Could Go Back And Change The Course Of My Life. Make Different Choices...but The Past Cannot Be Changed, And We Carry Our Choices With Us, Forward, Into The Unknown. We Can Only Move On. Do You Remember That I Told You That At Spence?

There's No Such Thing As Nothing. In Every Nothing, There's A Something. In Fact, There Could Be Everything!

The Rules Of Magic, My Dear, Are Best Not Discusses. For Once We Understand The Illusion, We No Longer Believe It.

Nobody Wants To Be Themselves. That's Why There's Tv. -ephigenia.

In Our Travels, We Have Come Across Many Equations--math For Understanding The Universe, For Making Music, For Mapping Stars, And Also For Tipping, Which Is Important. Here Is Our Favorite Equation: Us Plus Them Equals All Of Us. It Is Very Simple Math. Try It Sometime. You Probably Won’t Even Need A Pencil.

Evie Was So Nervous That She Downed Her Cocktail In Two Stiff Swigs, Then Refilled Her Glass. Henry Arched An Eyebrow. “a Pro, I See.” “what Else Is There To Do In Ohio?

I Don't Know. Sometimes, I Feel Nothing, And I'm So Afraid. Afraid I'll Stop Feeling Anything At All. I'll Just Slip Away Inside Myself...i Just Need To Feel Something" A Great And Terrible Beauty, Page 177, By

People Tend To Think That Hate Is The Most Dangerous Emotion. But Love Is Equally Dangerous,” Will Said. “there Are Many Stories Of Spirits Haunting The Places And People Who Meant The Most To Them. In Fact, There Are More Of Those Than There Are Revenge Stories.

They Misspelled 'party.' How Evil Genius Can They Be?

Everything Is Randomly Connected.

Chin Held High, Miss Ohio Beamed At An Imagined Crowd. "i Want To Be A Motivational Speaker." "what Are You Going To Motivate People To Do?" Smile Still In Place, She Cut Her Eyes At Adina. "you Know. Motivational ... Stuff.

But Aren't Many Gardens Beautiful Because They Are Imperfect?...aren't The Strange, New Flowers That Arise By Mistake Or Misadventure As Pleasing As The Well-tended And Planned?

I Know Because I Read. Might I Suggest You Try It?

Because 'you're Perfect Just The Way You Are,' Is What Your Guidance Counselor Says. And She's An Alcoholic.

She Never Utters A Sound Even When She's Crying, And That Makes Me A Little Sad. Doesn't Seem Right. When You Cry, People Should Hear You. The World Should Stop.

In A World Beyond This One, That River Goes On Singing Sweetly, Enchanting Us With What We Want To Hear, Shaping What We Need To See In Order To Keep Going. In Those Waters, All Disappointments Are Forgotten, Our Mistakes Forgiven. Gazing Into Them, We See A Strong Father. A Loving Mother. Warm Rooms Where We Are Sheltered, Adored, Wanted. And The Uncertainty Of Our Futures Is Nothing More Than The Fog Of Breath On A Windowpane.

The World Expected Girls To Pluck And Primp And Put On Heels. Meanwhile, Boys Dressed In Rumpled T-shirts And Baggy Pants And Misplace Their Combs, And Yet You Were Suppose To Fall At Their Feet? Unacceptable.

We're All Damaged Somehow."-a Great And Terrible Beauty

Really? And What Curse Befalls The Adams Of The World?" Ann Opens Her Mouth And, Presumably Thinking Of Nothing To Say, Closes It Again. It Is Felicity Who Answers, Eyes Steely. "they Are Weak To Temptation. And We Are Their Temptresses.

We Have Traveled Through Space And Time. We Have Been Many Places. Visited Many Worlds. And There Is Good News: The Acoustics Everywhere Are Terrific.

Dead Bodies Are Such Trouble,” Evie Said With A Little Sigh, And Mabel Had To Turn Her Head Away So As Not To Laugh.

There's A Lot About Discovering Who You Are And How Difficult That Is. And It Never Stops.

Discovering Who You Are

Hot Off The Presses, Today’s Headlines: The Love Of Your Life Does Not Approve Of My Wanton Flapper Ways,” Evie Said In A Voice Of Affected Mystery. “really, Mabesie. You Might Want To Reconsider—he Is A Bit Of A Killjoy.

Does My New Feminism Make Me Look Fat?

That's What Living In Their World Is-a Big Lie. An Illusion Where Everyone Looks The Other Way And Pretends That Nothing Unpleasant Exists At All, No Goblins Of The Dark, No Ghosts Of The Soul.

People Think Boundaries And Borders Build Nations. Nonsense-words Do. Beliefs, Declarations, Constitutions-words. Stories. Myths. Lies. Promises. History

Discomfortwear™, Shapewear Designed To Eliminate Rills, Ripples, And Muffin Tops. In Some Cases Known To Eliminate Circulation And Breathing. If You’re Not Uncomfortable, It’s Not Discomfortwear™.

The Wind Picks Up. It Sends Leaves Scurrying For Cover Until A Softer Breeze Blows Through, Settling Them Down Again As If To Say, Shhh, There, There, It's All Right. One Leaf Still Dances In The Air. It Spins Higher And Higher, Defying Gravity And Logic, Stretching For Something Just Out Of Reach. It Shall Have To Fall, Of Course. Eventually. But For Now, I Hold My Breath, Willing It To Keep Going, Taking Comfort In Its Struggle.

Simon, Would You Still Care For Me If You Discovered I Was Not Who I Say I Am?" What Do You Mean?" I Mean Would You Still Care For Me, No Matter What You Came To Know?" What A Thing To Ponder. I Don't Know What To Say." The Answer Is No. He Does Not Need To Say It. With A Sigh, Simon Digs At The Fire With The Iron Poker. Bits Of The Charred Log Fall Away, Revealing The Angry Insides. They Flare Orange For A Moment, Then Quiet Down Again. After Three Tries, He Gives Up. I'm Afraid This Fire's Had It." I Can See A Few Embers Remaining. "no, I Think Not. If..." He Sighs, And It Says Everything.

She Hadn’t Meant To Get Trapped In A Conversation. That Was The Trouble With Offering Help To Old People.

She Wished She Were As Inconsequential As The Ghosts In Her Dreams.

Inconsequential

Adina Appealed To The Sky. "we Asked For Rescue And You Sent Us Incompetent Rockstar Pirates With A Broken Ship And Perfect Abs?" "thank You, God," Petra Said.

How Do You Invent A Religion?” Evie Asked. Will Looked Over The Top Of His Spectacles. “you Say, ‘god Told Me The Following,’ And Then Wait For People To Sign Up.

Reality Is A State Of Mind. To The Banker, The Money In His Ledger Book Is All Very Real, Though He Doesn't Actually See It Or Touch It. But To The Brahma, It Simply Doesn't Exist The Way The Air And The Earth, Pain And Loss Do. To Him, The Banker's Reality Is Folly. To The Banker, The Brahma's Ideas Are As Inconsequential As Dust.

It Occurs To Me That Cricket Is Not The True Sport In London - Gossip Is.

Brought To You By The Corporation: In Your Homes And In Your Pants.

Everyone's Dying. A Little, Every Day. Make It Count.

There Is Nothing More Terrifying Than The Absoluteness Of One Who Believes He's Right.

Feast For The Fisherman, The Ultimate Emo Band. Said To Be Sold With A Complimentary Prescription For Antidepressants And A Free Flatiron.

I've Been Poked And Prodded In Places I'd Always Prided Myself On Keeping Untouched For That One Special Doctor Who Gives Me A Ring And A Promise Someday.

- 'music Opens Your Soul, Makes You Ready.' - 'ready For What?' - He Smiles Big. 'exactly.

True Affection And Love Have A Purity Which Shall Always Prevail Over Bigotry.

Centuries Of Fighting, And For What? I Say. "today It Ends. I Can't Live In Fear Any Longer. I've Cursed This Power. I've Both Enjoyed And Misused It. And I've Hidden It Away. Now I Must Try To Wield It Correctly, To Marry It To A Purpose And Hope That Is Enough.

No One Can Steal Our Dream.

She Was Too Much—for Zenith, Ohio. She’d Tried At Times To Make Herself Smaller, To Fit Neatly Into The Ordered Lines Of Expectation. But Somehow, She Always Managed To Say Or Do Something Outrageous—she’d Accept A Dare To Climb A Flagpole, Or Make A Slightly Risqué Joke, Or Go Riding In Cars With Boys—and Suddenly She Was “that Awful O’neill Girl” All Over Again.

Jeez, Someone Needs To Push The Reset Button On This Planet.

The Mere Suggestion Of Fame And Fortune Casts A Glamour All Its Own. It Is Rather Alarming How Quickly People Will Turn Someone Else's Fiction Into Fact In Order To Support Their Own Fictions Of Themselves.

A Place To Keep All Your Secrets

Power Changes Everything Till It Is Difficult To Say Who Are The Heroes And Who The Villains.

Reason Was For Suckers And Presbyterians.

J.t Woodland, Known As “the Cute One” In The Corporation’s Seventh-grade Boy Band, Boyz Will B Boyz. Due To The Success Of Their Triple-platinum Hit, “let Me Shave Your Legs Tonight, Girl,” Boyz Will B Boyz Ruled The Charts For A Solid Eleven Months Before Hitting Puberty And Losing Ground To Hot Vampire Boyz.

Gemma, You See How It Is. They've Planned Our Entire Lives, From What We Shall Wear To Whom We Shall Marry And Where We Shall Live. It's One Lump Of Sugar In Your Tea Whether You Like It Or Not And You'd Best Smile Even If You're Dying Deep Inside. We're Like Pretty Horses, And Just As On Horses, They Mean To Put Blinders On Us So We Can't Look Left Or Right But Only Straight Ahead Where They Would Lead. Please, Please, Please, Gemma, Let's Not Die Inside Before We Have To.

I Feel Like I Swallowed A Magritte. Like On The Inside, I'm Made Of Clouds And Floating Eyes, Green Apples, And Slowly Rising Men In Bowler Hats.

Writers Are Also Sort Of Like Vultures, But With Fewer Ethics.

Didn't You Have Any Sadistic Nannies Who Told You These Tales To Keep You Quiet And Well Behaved At Night? Heavens, What's To Become Of The Empire If Governesses Have Lost Their Touch For Scaring The Wits Out Of Their Girls?

She's No Beauty, Mate

People Will Believe Anything If It Means They Can Go On With Their Lives And Not Have To Think Too Hard About It.

You're Quite Tall.' Just What A Girl Wants To Be Reminded Of.

Greetings, Ax Murderer! I Was Just Wondering How You Like Your Eggs?

War." Gorgon Spits The Word. "that Is What They Call It To Give The Illusion Of Honor And Law. It Is Chaos. Madness And Blood And The Hunger To Win. It Has Always Been Thus And Shall Always Be So.

You’ve Been Assigned An Identity Since Birth. Then You Spend The Rest Of Your Life Walking Around In It To See If It Really Fits. You Try On All These Different Selves And Abandon Just As Many. But Really It’s About Dismantling All That False Armor, Getting Down To What’s Real. -going Bovine

Sheep. I'm Stuck In A Boarding School Filled With Sheep.

Truth Casts A Spell Of Its Own.

Beneath The Skin, There Is Fear. Pain. Remorse. Yearning. Desire. A Fierce Longing For Power. All Of This. We Are Joined. It Is As If We Live In The Center Of A Great Storm. Around Us The World Of The Realms Revolves Like A Giant Kaleidoscope, Images Refracted Again And Again. So Many Worlds! So Much To Know.

The World Is A Lie...not You And Me.

The Only Thing I Don't Divulge Is The Truth About Mother Killing Little Carolina. I Don't Know Why. Perhaps I Sense He's Not Ready To Know That Just Yet. Maybe He Never Will. People Can Live With Only So Much Honesty. And Sometimes, People Can Suprise You. I Talk To My Brother As I Never Have Before, Trusting In Him, Letting The River Listen To My Confessions On Its Path Toward The Sea. ~pg 693

We're In English Class, Which For Most Of Us Is An Excruciating Exercise In Staying Awake Through The Great Classics Of Literature. These Works - Groundbreaking, Incendiary, Timeless - Have Been Pureed By The Curriculum Monsters Into A Digestible Pabulum Of Themes And Factoids We Can Spew Back On A Test. Scoring Well On Tests Is The Sort Of Happy Thing That Gets The School District The Greenbacks They Crave. Understanding And Appreciating The Material Are Secondary.

Sitting In My Favorite Coffeehouse With A New Notebook And A Hot Cup Of Java Is My Idea Of Heaven.

Around Us The Night Creatures Have Their Say. We Are Surrounded By A Symphony Of Crickets And Frogs. Neither Of Us Feels The Need To Speak, And I Suppose That Is One Of The Qualities I Find Comforting In Kartik. We Can Be Alone Together.

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