“He sang his last song. And the words of that have never been written down. But it was sweet and of great beauty, and those that heard it were changed utterly.Some say it was the song that moves the stars.”

“He treated the stars as though they were love songs written to him by God.”

“If I were a rock star, I’d have Taylor Swifted him and written one of those anthemic I don’t love you anymore songs.”

“on him, under him, with his mouth pressed to hers, he sang to her uncouth songs that moved through her body.”

“Last night, instead of sleeping,he just lay behind her, listening to her breathe and thinking that sound was sweeter than any song he’d ever heard her sing. And his Stella had a beautiful voice, never heard better.”

“XII sang his name instead of song;Over and over I sang his name:Backward and forward I sang it along,With my sweetest notes, it was still the same!I sang it low, that the slave-girls nearMight never guess, from what they could hear,That all the song was a name.”