“While the subject matter is lynching, on a deeper level, this novel is about identity. Whom and what we identify ourselves with determines our characters, determines who we are, and what we do.”

“We remember with our emotions. The things that were important in our emotional life, that's what we remember.”

“I write because the lives of all of us are stories. If enough of those stories are told, then perhaps we will begin to see that our lives are the same story. The differences are merely in the details.”

“....the racial divides in the United States will not be overcome until lynchings of all kinds are as painful to nonblacks as they are to blacks, until each of us become guardians of the sufferings history has bequeathed us.”

“Dying ain't important. Everyone does that. What's important is how well you do your living.”

“What would they do if I said I hurt so much I feel like I want to die?—Jeremy Richards”

“How can I love you if I don't know what hurts you?”