“You okay in there?""No, I'm hanging from a closet rod.”

“Nurse: "You look like a pharmaceutical rep. you can leave samples in the closet."Joe: "I'm actually a lawyer."Nurse: "My condolences.”

“A heroin-thin boy with enough rings in his eyebrows to resemble a shower curtain rod...”

“There are skeletons in everyone's closet, things no one ever wants the world to discover.”

“She suddenly remembered studying the brain in science class- how a steel rod pierced a man's skull, and he opened his mouth to speak Portuguese, a language he'd never studied. Maybe it would be like this, now, for Josie. Maybe her native tongue, from here on in, would be a string of lies.”

“I'm a daughter from a strong man and beautiful mommy, and I'm so proud to be I am.”

“Do you ever go back?"Ruthann nods, "When I need to remember where I came from, or where I'm headed.”