“... and because it was a drunken perception, it was perfect, entire, and lasted about half a second.”

“When some drunken fool asked if she was a lesbian, she would say, 'In everything but sexual preference.”

“There's nothing more embarrassing than to have earned the disfavor of a perceptive animal.”

“A hope fulfilled is already half a disappointment.”

“Naomi was a tough kid, so much tougher than Landsman ever needed to be. She was two years younger, close enough for everything Landsman did or said to constitute a mark that must be surpassed or a theory to disprove. She was boyish as a girl and mannish as a woman. When some drunken fool asked if she was a lesbian, she would say, “In everything but sexual preference.”

“Gwen thinks Lazar disrespected her because she's black. And look I mean you're aware of my policy when it comes to that kind of situation.""Your policy is 'What do I know about being black?'""What do I know about being black?...”

“They lay there for a few seconds, in the dark, in the future, listening to the fabulous clockwork of their hearts and lungs, and loving each other”