There is no greater power on this earth than story.

Did God ever cry over his lost angel, I wonder?

She dances a little jig. “This would make one hell of a TV show, huh?” “Yeah. But no one would believe it.” I should let it go. But it’s like the hole, like the door,...

I don’t have time to feel sorry for myself. I’ve got to think.

And please, stay away from those books you devour. They are putting the most fantastical tales into your head.

There’s no time to be modest. Reason will not work here. Without warning, I kiss Kartik. His lips, pressed firmly against mine, are a surprise. They are warm, light as breath, firm as the give...

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.

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,...

We all do things we desperately wish we could undo. Those regrets just become part of who we are, along with everything else. To spend time trying to change that, well, it’s like chasing clouds.

Oh, I didn’t think it wise to hide it. Might not be able to find it again,” I say, cheerily. “It’s sitting in plain view on your chair in the great hall. I do hope...

I know because I read…Your mind is not a cage. It’s a garden. And it requires cultivating.

May I suggest that you all read? And often. Believe me, it’s nice to have something to talk about other than the weather and the Queen’s health. Your mind is not a cage. It’s a...

I’m Sorry,’ he says. It’s simple and direct, with none of the nonsense about God calling home an angel too young and who are we to question his mysterious ways.

Sometimes I just want to burn down all the rules and start over.

…I think we should find some kind of shelter; a cave or something.””I don’t want to do that! What if there’s like, a creature living in the cave?” Tiara said. “Seriously, I saw this show...

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...

Sometimes we seek that which we are not yet ready to find.

Petra turned to her. “Everybody lies about who they are. Name one person here who isn’t doing that and I will drop out right now!”Shanti felt that snake of truth coil around her legs, threatening...

Taylor clapped her hands 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...

You can’t believe how bleeding scary the sea is! There’s, like, whales and storms and shit! They don’t bloody tell you that!

I’ve never done acid, finding it hard to go willingly to a place that could be frightening, hellish, and totally beyond my control. A place much like high school.

He smiles sadly. “Now I know my destiny.””What is it?””This.”He draws me in to him in a kiss. His lips are warm. He pulls me tighter in his embrace. The roots sigh and release their...

You and I, we must carry on, Gemma. I cannot afford the luxury of love. I must marry well. And now I must look after you. It is my duty.””If you wish to suffer, you...

I’m an oddity of one, my strangeness too complicated to explain or share.

To those who will see, the world waits.

Please, I’m a transgender former boy-bander. You think I don’t know how to defend myself?

The wind swoops over the tenements on Orchard Street, where some of those starry-eyed dreams have died and yet other dreams are being born into squalor and poverty, an uphill climb. It gives a slap...

Libraries are a force for good. They wear capes. They fight evil. They don’t get upset when you don’t send them a card on their birthdays. (Though they will charge you if you’re late returning...

I will never, ever drink whiskey again. From now on, it’s strictly sherry.

Maybe there’s a heaven, like they say, a place where everything we’ve ever done is noted and recorded, weighed on big karma scales. Maybe not. Maybe this whole thing is just a giant experiment run...

When she can’t bring me to heal with scolding, she bends me to shape with guilt.

There are no safe choices. Only other choices.

Dans chaque fin, il y a un début.

The glow dies down, and she’s standing at the end of my bed–the one who’s been following me around leaving feather messages. I take in the torn fishnets, plaid mini-kilt, shiny, riveted breastplate with leather...

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...

To each his own magic.

As a journalist, I am compelled to know the answers.””As a girl, I am compelled to protect what’s left of my manicure,” Petra said.

I’m a wild girl from a cursed line of women. I paw at the ground and run under the moon. I like the feel of my own body. I’m not a slut or a nympho...

I change the world, the world changes me.

Brought to you by The Corporation: In your homes and in your pants.

Fate determines your caste. You must accept it and live according to the rules.”You can’t really believe that!”I do believe it. That man’s misfortune is that he cannot accept his caste, his fate.”I know that...

The library card is a passport to wonders and miracles, glimpses into other lives, religions, experiences, the hopes and dreams and strivings of ALL human beings, and it is this passport that opens our eyes...

Could I have a Sloe Gin Fizz, without the gin?””What’s the point of that, Miss?” the waiter said.”Tomorrow morning,” Mabel said.

Might. Is there any opiate more powerful than that word?

I know it. I know I shall make beastly mistakes, Father-“”The world does not forgive mistakes so quickly, my girl.” He sounds bitter and sad.”If the world will not forgive me,” I say softly, “I...

What happens if your choice is misguided?’ I ask, softly.Miss Moore takes a pear from the bowl and offers us the grapes to devour. ‘You must try to correct it.”But what if it’s too late?...

Memphis found his smile. ‘You know me, sir. I don’t wear worry.

He took her face into his hands and his kiss blotted out the sky