People I didn't know formed a circle around me, sheltering me from view. They escorted me safely back to our jurta, undetected. They didn't ask for anything. They were happy to help someone, to succeed at something, even if they weren't to benefit. We'd been trying to touch the sky from the bottom of the ocean. I realized that if we boosted one another, maybe we'd get a little closer.
Ruta SepetysWillie said normal was boring and that I should be grateful that I had a touch of spice. She said no one cared about boring people, and when they died, they were forgotten, like something that slips behind the dresser.
Ruta SepetysI shut the bathroom door and caught sight of my face in the mirror. I had no idea how quickly it was to change, to fade. If I had, I would have stared at my reflection, memorizing it. It was the last time I would look into a real mirror for more than a decade.
Ruta SepetysMan, youโre a regular Bonnie Parker.โ โA dame that knows the ropes isnโt likely to get tied up.โ Jesse found that hysterical. โDid Willie say that?โ โNope, Mae West. Now, how do I get on this thing in a skirt?
Ruta SepetysLet me tell you something 'bout these rich Uptown folk," said Cokie. "They got everything that money can buy, their bank accounts are fat, but they ain't happy. They ain't ever gone be happy. You know why? They soul broke. And money can't fix that, no sir.
Ruta SepetysI leapt eagerly into books. The charactersโ lives were so much more interesting than the lonely heartbeat of my own.
Ruta SepetysOne day when I was fourteen, I told Charlie that I hated Mother. โDonโt hate her, Jo,โ he told me. โFeel sorry for her. Sheโs not near as smart as you. She wasnโt born with your compass, so she wanders around, bumping into all sorts of walls. Thatโs sad.โ I understood what he meant, and it made me see Mother differently. But wasnโt there some sort of rule that said parents had to be smarter than their kids? It didnโt seem fair.
Ruta Sepetys