The most true-love words are not the ones that grasp and hold and bind you, twisting you both up together in some black dance. No, they are ones that leave you free to stand alone on your own solid ground, leave him to do the same, a tender space between you.

You … You had always made the future feel safe. As long as you were in it too, beside me, I could be okay.

She would bring you some great book because she was a book matchmaker, because she loved books the way other girls loved clothes.

Blessed books—they’re a place to be alone, and no one else can come in.

she wonders if we feel more regret for the things we do or for the things we didn't do

We can get so wrapped up in our own misconceptions that we miss the simple beauty of the truth.

I was like a chocolate in a box, looking well behaved and perfect in place, all the while harboring a secret center.