Quotes from Tami Hoag

academic award.

What the fuck was up with a guy like that? What kind of message was he trying to send? To Kovac, a sweater tied around the neck said gay. Not that he gave a shit. It was just an observation. But then there were these metro guys -- or whatever the hell the fashionable people called them now. Sweater around the neck, manicures, and facials. Mixed messages. He never quite trusted a guy who sent mixed messages. Have a girlfriend or have a boyfriend. Pick a side.

the same privilege

Sometimes she can't find the right word, but she can find a word close to what she means. Anomia, the speech therapist calls

The day you get used to this , turn in your shield and your gun. You won't belong to the human race anymore. ~ Vince to Mendez

Where there's life, there's hope

Just like that. It's time I started paying attention, before I end up like Stan Dempsey, living alone with an arsenal and one lawn chair in the backyard.

handcuffs, no pistol-whipping . . .

But that's what bravery is: to be afraid and do what you have to do anyway. You can't have courage without fear.

It sounds like something from a comic book. It conjures images of Nazi war criminals

The horse world is populated by two kinds of people: those who love horses, and those who exploit horses and the people who love them.

We never know the quality of someone else's life, though we seldom resist the temptation to assume and pass judgement.

The world isn't black and white, Annie, it's shades of grey.

But then I had long mistaken being spoiled for being strong, being defiant for being independent, being reckless for being brave.

The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong at the broken places. May you grow strong at the broken places.

She had the kind of looks that had probably been quite pretty in high school, but were now worn down by years of smoking cigarettes, raising children, and the disappointment of being married to an asshole.

They don't matter. I thought I had to prove something, and I did, to myself. There's nothing left for me to prove. I can move on with my life.

i have no desire to spend my life dancing backward.

Never show your fear or your weaknesses, doll. Someone will spin you around and knock you flat with it when you least expect it.

a truth does not take too long to tell, only a fiction requires so much thought

We do the best we can," she said softly, looking inward. "And punish ourselves for it. I've tried to make my choices with the idea that I've made those choices for the greatest good. Sometimes someone suffers in the process, but I made the decision for the right reason. That should count for something, shouldn't it?

Anybody can be a victim, and anybody can flog themselves. Big fucking deal. But you put one foot on a ladder and climb to the next rung. Then you've done something. Then you've made a difference. And then what happens matters. Otherwise, it's just old news, and nobody wants to hear about it.

I'm telling you, you did what you believed you had to do through all of this. Not what was easiest or best for you. You did what you did, and you're owning it. And I don't know ten men who would be brave enough to do that.

She needed care and time; enough space not to feel threatened, but not so much that she could retreat.