StardustReader

“When babies babble, they are testing out their vocal apparatus to see what sounds they can make. They're also testing out their brains' language faculties—seeing whether people around them respond more to one sound or another. Imagine learning an instrument before you even have an idea what music is. You play a note or two, hear it, see if you like it, see if your audience likes it, and then you play more. Except that the instrument is located in your own chest, throat, and head. Meanwhile, your brain is rewiring itself with simple sorts of rules for communication by paying careful attention while your main caregiver talks to you.”
― Cat Bohannon, Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution

“I’m here. I had the world in my palm, and I found it wanting. I’m a greedy creature, Priya. I came here for you. There is a flower in my heart, and it grew for you.”
― Tasha Suri, The Lotus Empire

“What does it matter,” Malini said, her voice splintering. “If I don’t
have you? If you are gone where I cannot see you or feel you or dream
you again, then what is any of it worth to me?”
― Tasha Suri, The Lotus Empire

“When it comes to painful periods, there is an epidemic of undertreatment. Women's pain is undertreated in general, as compared to men's, but painful periods have historically been seen as a "woman thing" and hence unimportant. Our patriarchal system has dismissed menstrual pain as both exaggerated and a sign of weakness, and at times, perversely, as something women deserve (punishment for "original sin," I suppose).”
― Jen Gunter, Blood: The Science, Medicine, and Mythology of Menstruation