“Ain't no glory made from being dependable.”

“Ain't no man can outrun his fate.”

“Chip said it was his piano hands - one ain't never doing the same thing as the other.”

“Folks think a lifetime is a thing stretched out over years. It ain't. It can happen quick as a match in a dark room.”

“It ain't really Czechoslovakian,' I said, coughing. 'We used to call it the Cheque. Like, you drink it up now, you pay for it later.”

“The kid come in at a strange angle, made the notes glitter like crystal.”

“Do you still call it talent, if it blooms without any kind of nurturing? That's got to be something else.She made talent sound like a damned insult.”