“He'd imagined peacetime would bring him a sense of belonging. During the war it kept him going, that thought of peace. He'd believed in it like a season he knew it would arrive one day”

“Januz feels glad to have her in his arms--his wife, who would do anything to protect their son. This is how she presents herself. Like a soldier who would kill for her country. And her country is their son.”

“Memories shrink. Like a soap bar used over and over, they become deformed, weaker scented, too slight and slippery to hold.”

“The dress means no harm, after all. And it is new. It carries nothing inside it but the possible beginnings of her downfall.”

“I loved Jack because of every little thing about him. The way he laughed, the way he made me smile, the way he'd stay up until nine in the morning watching zombie movies he'd seen a hundred times, and the way he could never hold a grudge. I loved him because I loved him, not because it was fate or destiny or in my blood, We had chosen each other, and that felt more powerful and more magical.”

“Our dreams take us into other worlds, alternative realities that help us make sense of day-to-day realities.”

“I looked at him like he was an idiot, but he didn’t notice. Or maybe he got it so often, he thought that was how people looked at him.”