"Heidi was [... the] kind of woman whose strengths were her constant self-maintenance, knowing everything you never wanted to about hemlines and shoes, and sending entirely too chatty e-mails to people who couldn't care less" (Chapter 1, p. 2).

"[Auden] was such a smart kid, [she]should have figured out that the only way to really get [her] parents' attention was to disappoint them or fail" (Chapter 1, p. 9).

" There is really nothing more intimidating than approaching a group of girls who have already made up their minds about you. It's like walking a plank, no way to go but down" (Chapter 5, p. 79).

"That was [Hollis], the living, breathing To Be Continued [...] he was always in progress" (Chapter 5, p. 79).

"There's something about living at the beach in the summer. You get so used to the sun and sand that it gets hard to remember what the rest of the world, and the...