One thing I can tell you for sure is this: we only regret what we don't do in life.

A daughter without her mother is a woman broken. It is a loss that turns to arthritis and settles deep into her bones.

Alice started to cry. It came with no sound, no shuddering, no childlike hysterics, just a soul-deep release that turned into moisture and dripped down her puffy pink cheeks. She touched her tears, frowning. Then she looked up at Julia and whimpered two words before she fell asleep. ‘Real hurts.’

Caro: "Bite me." Ruby: "I gave that up in kindergarten.

Popularity means people think they know you.

It was the Magic Hour, the moment in time when every leaf and blade of grass seemed to separate, when sunlight, burnished by the rain and softened by the coming night, gave the world an impossibly beautiful glow.

Promises were a lot like impressions. The second one didn't count for much.