Having an aura of menace is like having a pet weasel, because you rarely meet someone who has one, and when you do, it makes you want to hide under the coffee table.

Who are you?" Violet asked. It is confusing to fall asleep in the daytime and wake up at night. "what are you doing with Uncle Monty's reptiles?" Klaus asked. It is also confusing to realize you have been sleeping on stairs, rather than in a bed or sleeping bag. "Dixnik?" Sunny asked. It is always confusing why anyone would choose to wear a plaid shirt.

The rinsed foam swirled into one drain that always clogged come October when the maples dropped Canadian propaganda over everything.

When do you learn that the world, like any diner worth its salt, is open twenty-four hours a day?

When trouble strikes, head to the library. You will either be able to solve the problem, or simply have something to read as the world crashes down around you.

In this book, not only is there no happy ending, there is no happy beginning and very few happy things in the middle.

There is a kind of crying I hope you have not experienced, and it is not just crying about something terrible that has happened, but a crying for all of the terrible things that have happened, not just to you but to everyone you know and to everyone you don’t know and even the people you don’t want to know, a crying that cannot be diluted by a brave deed or a kind word, but only by someone holding you as your shoulders shake and your tears run down your face.