Though at this moment she felt abused, abandoned, and ashamed of herself, Madeleine knew that she was still young, that she had her whole life ahead of her--a life in which, if she persevered, she might do something special--and that part of persevering meant getting past moments just like this one, when people made you feel small, unlovable, and took away your confidence.

Normality wasn't normal. It couldn't be. If normality were normal, everybody could leave it alone. They could sit back and let normality manifest itself.

Regret, already sogging me down, burst its dam. It seeped into my legs, it pooled in my heart.

I think, especially when you're in college, each book that you're reading tends to tell you who you are.

To be inclusive you must accommodate different levels of sophistication.

The mind self-edits. The mind airbrushes. It's a different thing to be inside a body than outside. From outside, you can look, inspect, compare. From inside there is no comparison.

So do boys and men announce their intentions. They cover you like a sarcophagus lid. And call it love.