Quotes from Wendelin Van Draanen

I am a runner. That's what I do. That's who I am. Running is all I know, or want, or care about.

Sometimes the things we really want are right in front of us. We just don't see them.

Don't even try to talk to me when I'm watching the moon. That's my moon, baby.

There are certain things I believe we need to keep in our emotional arsenal as we navigate through life. Hope is a big one. The more of that we can carry, the better.

But in my heart I knew the old Bryce was toast. There was no going back. Not to Garrett or Shelly or Miranda or any of the other people who wouldn't understand. Juli was different, but after all these years that didn't bother me anymore. I liked it. I liked her.

and I realized that Garrett was right about one thing- I had flipped. Completely.

You never forget your first love.

I fell asleep that night thinking about the kiss that might have been. What did a kiss feel like, anyway? Somehow I knew it wouldn't be like the one I got from Mom or Dad at bedtime. The same species, maybe, but a radically different beast, to be sure. Like a wolf and a whippet – only science would put them on the same tree.

I liked it. I liked her. And every time I saw her, she seemed more beautiful. She just seemed to glow. I'm not talking like a hundred-watt bulb; she just had this warmth to her. Maybe it came from climbing that tree. Maybe it came from singing to chickens. Maybe it came from whacking at two-by-fours and dreaming about perpetual motion. I don't know. All I know is that compared to her, Shelly and Miranda seemed so...ordinary.

Girls don't fight fair. They pull your hair and gauge you and pinch you; then they run off gasping to mommy when you try and defend yourself with a fist. Then you get locked into time out, and for what? No, my friend, the secret is, don't snap at the bait. Let it dangle. Swim around it. Laugh it off. After a while they've given up and try to lure someone else.

Maybe my mother's right. Maybe there is more to Bryce Loski than I know. Maybe it's time to meet him in the proper light.

It's disturbing how fast weeds take root in my garden of worthiness. They're so hard to pull. And grow back so easily.

By the end of that first day, what I'd made was a big mess. But if chaos is a necessary step in the organization of one's universe, that I was well on my way.

The choices you make now will affect you for the rest of your life.

I wipe away my tears and nod, because the pain in my leg is nothing compare to the one in my heart.

A painting is more than the sum of its parts.

HERE LIES THE MYSTERY PISSER P.I.P.

I realize something. That wasn't a finish line for me...This is my new starting line.

Bryce, she whispers. What's wrong. I can barely breathe as I ask her, Do you like him? Do I... you mean Jon? Yes! Well, sure. He's nice and - No, do you like him? My heart was pounding through my chest as I took her other hand and waited. Well, no. I mean, not like that.... No! She said no! I didn't care where I was, I didn't care who saw. I wanted, just had to kiss her. I leaned in, closed my eyes, and then...

I miss school. What's wrong with me?

Proper lighting is everything, Julianna.

Aw, he's just you know...entrenched, Matt said. Gotta adjust to the perspective and deal from there. Then he added, Not that I'd want him as my dad.... Mike practically sprayed his milk. Dude! Can you imagine? Then Matt gave my dad a slap on the back and said, No way. I'm sticking with my main man here. My mom grinned from across the kitchen and said, Me too. I'd never seen my father cry. And he didn't exactly sit there bawling, but there were definitely tears welling up in his eyes.

I was slipping, man, and it was definetly time to get a grip.

It was beyond embarrassing or humiliating or even mortifying. It was ego-slaying!