All I ever really want to know is how other people are making it through life—where do they put their body, hour by hour, and how do they cope inside of it.

He's stuck at 3:14 a.m. with only the moon to talk to.

Very few women have become famous for being who they actually are, nuanced and imperfect. When honesty happens, it's usually couched in self-ridicule or self-help. Dunham doesn't apologize like that-she simply tells her story as if it might be interesting. The result is shocking and radical because it is utterly familiar. Not That Kind of Girl is hilarious, artful, and staggeringly intimate; I read it shivering with recognition.

She bludgeoned me with a look of such limitless compassion that I immediately began to cry.

I nodded, pretending I was relaxed. I watched the sunlight sparkling on the water and practiced mind-body integration for a few seconds by quietly hyperventilating.

I am very sincere. Some people are always kidding, so when you're not, it's going to seem annoying to them.

We don't really believe in mowing the lawn; we do it only to avoid unnecessary engagement with the neighbors.