“You do not win a war by dying for your country. You win a war by making sure that some poor bastard dies for his.”

“Fast unmittelbar darauf sandte der Dschungel seine schlanken grünen Finger auf die Fläche die Gato velassen hatte, und tastete nach neuen Stellen, wo er wachsen konnte.”

“Wagstaff was a trim little man in a dark-blue uniform with an armband embroidered with the words CIVIL DEFENSE."Thank you, Headmaster, and good morning, young gentlemen. Yesterday, as I'm sure you'll remember, I spoke to you about the ways you can help your parents prepare their homes against the possibility of nuclear attack."Clem grinned, noting Tash Harmsworth's scowl. Tash was a bugger for an incorrect proposition.”

“So? You think people stop talking to you when they are dead?”

“What I'm trying to explain to my sulky little cousin is that we are doing things backwards. We are going from the end of the river to the start of the river. And endings are always sad. We are doing the sad bit first, which is wrong. Strange.”

“Yes, I still think of him as that, call him that. It's as real as any of his other names.”

“Sprawled, bloody, holding the pistol, he looked like a police photograph of a suicide. Dart went back to his chair and picked up the Smith and Wesson. Five minutes passed like a year.”