Quotes from Barbara Park

I'm so lazy as far as liking to get up, go to the office in my pajamas, get dressed about noon. And I hate flying. So I have this really laid-back, good lifestyle, and it's hard to nudge me out of it.

My senior year of high school, I was voted Wittiest. So, several years later, I decided to try my hand at writing humor to see if I could be witty enough to make some money.

My own pregnancies were all about me, me, me. My aches, my pains, my swollen feet, and my body that looked like the Michelin Man.

I wasn't that over-the-top, but I got sent to the principal in first grade for talking. And my father was for a long time the president of the Board of Education. That was always a hard note to bring home.

Society just has a way of inhibiting you, which is good and bad.

I was a good kid, but I was just very chatty. Teachers were rarely entertained, but occasionally a child was, which was enough for me. Everything was so urgent. I needed to say it immediately.

For 20 years I've gotten to laugh my way through my work. For me, that's a dream job.

I'm not actually sure I'm grown-up enough for grown-up books.

A little glitter can turn your whole day around.

I don't even like clowns. Clowns are not normal people.

Our nannas are losers.

And sometimes when you're very mixed-up inside, you do things you know you shouldn't do.

Sometimes grown ups don't act their right old age

Can't we be friends?' I hate your guts, Frankovitch' Can't our guts be friends?

When you're in between dreams, you get to lean back and relax and stop trying so hard. Trying to be somebody, I mean. It's not as exciting as being a television star, but it's not that bad, either. You just have to learn to be satisfied with the way you are for a while. Not Forever. Just until you're finished resting.

The upside to grief is it takes away your appetite. When people say you look good they really mean it. Nature's thoughtful that way.

Sometimes I think he's the kind of friend that grownups call a 'fair-weather friend.' That means when everything's going smoothly, he's the best friend a guy could want. But as soon as something goes wrong…(he) sort of turns on you.

Okay, here is the problem," I said. "Assignment means schoolwork, and Hawaii means vacation. And children do not actually like to mix those two items.

Y are you called the cheese man?

How many minutes is shortly?" I asked. "Is it one minute or eight minutes or eleven minutes? On account of if it's one minute, I can wait, probably. But eleven minutes would be out of the question." Mr. Scary walked back to my desk. And he sat me in my chair. I glanced up at him. "All I'm looking for is a rough estimate," I said.

Yeah, but what does that even mean... heaven? Because see, I need to be able to put him somewhere, Zo. In my head, I mean. I need to be able to close my eyes and picture him and know he's okay. And just saying the word heaven doesn't help that much. Because like what is heaven, exactly? And where is it? And what do you do there?

They really liked each other, too. Not like boyfriend and girlfriend, I don't mean. But they both had naturally curly hair, and they both thought professional wrestling was real--which are two pretty strong bonds, when you think about it.

Sometimes a little pat is all a friend can do.

Except for not that Jim." After a while, I started to get a little bit thirsty. That's what happens when chalk sprinkles get in your throat.