“The nerds and the squids were one.”

“It's about average for us. Behavior always draws more than survey. We're the sexy ones,' Nate said with a grin.Amy snorted. 'Oh, yeah, you guys are the Mae Wests of the nerd world.'We're action nerds,' Nate said. 'Adventure nerds. Nerds of romance.”

“Real stories like this, human ones, could get you sent to prison, and it didn’t matter what they were about. It didn’t matter if the story was about an old woman or a squid attack—if it diverted emotion from the Dear Leader, it was dangerous.”

“it's like a squid in love with the sky.”

“Did you just say 'nerd'?""Not a 'nerd' - node.""Oh.”

“New Music, I guess, is all those bands Angie listens to. They have names like Depeche Mode and The Smiths and all they sound the same to me - like a bunch of skinny white British nerds on Thorazine. The Stones, when they started, were a bunch of skinny white British nerds too, but they never sounded like they were on Thorazine. Even if they were.”