Star people are rare.

Throughout the day, Stargirl had been dropping money. She was the Johnny Appleseed of loose change: a penny here, a nickel there. Tossed to the sidewalk, laid on a shelf or bench. Even quarters. "I hate change," she said. "It's so . . . jangly." "Do you realize how much you must throw away in a year?" I said. "Did you ever see a little kid's face when he spots a penny on a sidewalk?"

Write what you care about. If you do that, you stand the best chance of doing your best writing.

This was the ghetto: where children grow down instead of up.

I love surprises! That's what is great about reading. When you open a book, you never know what you'll find.

She was bendable light: she shone around every corner of my day.

The blanket was there, but it was the boy's embrace that covered and warmed him.