Think for a minute, darling: in fairy tales it's always the children who have the fine adventures. The mothers have to stay at home and wait for the children to fly in the window.
Audrey NiffeneggerI look at him, look at the book, remember, this book, this moment, the first book I ever loved
Audrey NiffeneggerHe made the boxes because he was lonely. He didn't have anyone to love, and he made the boxes so he could love them, and so people would know that he existed, and because birds are free and the boxes are hiding places for the birds so they will feel safe, and he wanted to be free and be safe. The boxes are for him so he can be a bird.
Audrey NiffeneggerEvery minute of his life since then has been marked by her absence, every action has lacked dimension because she is not there to measure against. And when I was young I didn't understand, but now, I know, how absence can be present, like a damaged nerve, like a dark bird.
Audrey NiffeneggerHe had never realized, while Elspeth was alive, the extent to which a thing had not completely happened until he told her about it.
Audrey NiffeneggerIโm curious about things that people arenโt supposed to seeโso, for example, I liked going to the British Museum, but I would like it better if I could go into all the offices and storage rooms, I want to look in all the drawers andโdiscover stuff. And I want to know about people. I mean, I know itโs probably kind of rude but I want to know why you have all these boxes and whatโs in them and why all your windows are papered over and how long itโs been that way and how do you feel when you wash things and why donโt you do something about it?
Audrey Niffenegger