More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
sharing most of that life with the same woman. She died and stayed behind. I lived and I left.
The story of how I left Huckleberry begins—as do all worthy stories—with a goat.
The last pair of brothers who fought as much as the Chengelpet brothers were named Cain and Abel, and at least one of them finally took some direct action.
“You and I don’t actually need to be here for this,” I said to the goat. The goat didn’t respond, but I could tell she agreed with me.
“I’m glad you didn’t use the wastebasket to vomit earlier,” Savitri said. “Because now there’s a place for mine to go.”
“Well, fine,” I said. “If you want to get snippy about it, Miss Literal Pants.”
he was smart enough to mask his frustration in general terms, and spent most of the meeting trying to undermine Jane and me in the most complimentary way possible.
“I suppose,” Zoë said. “You’d think being the object of worship for a whole alien race would get me out of homework now and then. Don’t think I haven’t noticed that it doesn’t.”
But Zoe did try to use it to stay up past her bedtime.
“Your father was a good man to you,” I said. “Whatever else he was and whatever else he did, he got that thing right.”
“I’ve been to the afterlife. Coming back from that’s not a problem. It’s life you don’t get over.”
“You’re not hearing what I’m saying,” Trujillo said.
I hear what you're saying, but don't think you know what you're saying. Your words don't match your thoughts. Stop talking and think about it. Then tell me what you actually mean.
“How was your thing today with General Szilard?” I asked, changing the subject before my competence could be questioned further.
Gretchen Trujillo and Zoë actually mocked the boys into submission, proving that one should never underestimate the power of teenage girl scorn,
Teenagers can be idiotic and stupid, but teenagers also model their behavior from the signals they get from adults.
That’s a little much to rest on the shoulders of a game played with a bouncy red ball.
Stross was floating lazily in the air he was grooving on,
“I think it’s interesting that in the middle of a crisis you can still think of ways to hamstring a boy sweet on your daughter,” Savitri said. “In a twisted way it’s almost admirable.” I grinned. Savitri grinned back, which was my hope and intent. “One has to have priorities,” I said. Savitri rolled her eyes and left.
I love the interactions between John and Savitri
“After they’re down, Stross will set the Magellan to drive itself into the sun. No muss, no fuss, no sign of us.”
When you control communication, you can hide anything you want.”
“It’s not you,” she said. “I’m not angry with you.” “That’s good to hear,” I said. “Although since you just called me ignorant and stupid, you can understand why I wonder if you’re telling me the truth about that.”
From the bed, Babar looked over to see what idiocy I was up to.
And for the first time in my life I knew my life was more than what was directly in front of me. I learned to see the constellations, not just the stars.
When you make someone more than human, you make them less than human, too.
John Scalzi can definitely craft a profound statement.
“Try not to pee so much,” I said. “Oh, thanks,” Savitri said. “You’ve just sliced through the Gordian knot with that solution. No wonder you’re in charge.”
God I love John and Savitri conversations
“It smelled like an armpit to start,” Savitri said. “We’re just adding to the funk.”
Babar was the only dog in the colony who was a herding dog;
Supposed to say:
"Babar was the only dog in the colony that was NOT a herding dog"
This mistake is fixed in the audiobook.
Sure, it was inconvenient, but it was also crowded.
“Planning to shower anytime soon?” she asked. “I mean, no offense, but for you smelling like an armpit would be a step up.”
“When he comes back, I’m going to tell him all the horrible things you’ve said,” Zoë said. “And then I’m going to let him poo on your head.”
Zoe seems, here by her dialog, less mature than she did in Zoe's Tale.
“We’re bored, so you suggest school?” Zoë said. “Who are you? Also, not likely, since you’ve confiscated all our PDAs. It’s going to be hard to teach us anything when we don’t have lessons.”
Dr. Tsao keeps distracting me when I’m trying to get work done.” “She’s hogging your equipment,” I said. “No, she’s just really cute,”
“I want to grow flowers, too,” Jane said. “Roses.” “Really,” I said. “You’ve never really been into pretty things before.” “It’s not that,” Jane said. “This planet smells like an armpit.”
Savitri, who had been making jokes about “long pig,” found something new to snark about.
The colonists celebrated by building the Mennonites a meeting house, for which they only occasionally needed to ask for advice from the Mennonites themselves.
Savitri relented after three months and went on a date with Beata. The next day Savitri described the evening as an “interesting failure” and refused to discuss it further.
God do I love Savitri
She hadn’t been having an affair before, she said, but now it sounded like a damn fine idea indeed.
“I’m sorry,” I said again. Hiram didn’t have anything more to say.
The ships winked in, singly, then in pairs and triplets, then in constellations.
“They’re crazy,” the lieutenant said. “They’re patriots, Lieutenant,” Gau said, turning to the officer. “And they’ve chosen what they believe in. Don’t be disrespectful of that choice.”
“Jesus,” I said. “Just when you think you know a guy. Or gal. Or creature of indeterminate gender, which is what it is.” “It’s not indeterminate,” Jane said. “It’s both.”
Empires of conquest don’t last, Administrator Perry. They hollow out from within, from the greed of rulers and the endless appetite for war.
detonated them in a sequence determined by him to have the greatest aesthetic impact. Stross was a quirky fellow.
I like that we just talk. I like feeling that connection with her. She’s part of who I am. Mother and sister and self. All of it. I like that she visits me. I know it’s just a dream. It’s still nice.”
“I still want to see Kathy one day,” she eventually said. “I’ll see what I can do,” I said. “Don’t say that unless you mean it,” Jane said. “I mean it,” I said, and was somewhat surprised that, in fact, I did. “I would like you to meet her. I wish you could have met her before.” “So do I,” Jane said.
Zoë turned serious. “Mr. Trujillo, your daughter is my best friend in the world,” she said. “I don’t want her to die. I don’t want you to die. I’m in a position to help. Please don’t condescend to me.”
I could see in my binoculars that at least a couple of colonists stood on their porches to see the soldiers. Mennonites. They were pacifists, but they sure as hell weren’t scared of anything.
“I was told to tell you that if you and your troops were willing to get back into your ships and just go back where you came from, we’d be happy to let you live.”
Savitri at her finest
“You should have left when you had the chance,” Savitri said.
Fucking cold
“You need to explain this to me like I’m an idiot,” I said. “Because clearly I am.”
“Hickory, have you ever lied to me?” I asked. “I do not believe you are aware of me or any Obin ever lying to you,” Hickory said. “No,” I said. “I don’t believe I am.”
