The Splendid Things We Planned Quotes

“Poor Scott. Briefly, briefly, as a boy on the verge of manhood, he’d been so handsome and promising that the sequel must have seemed a dream; behind the acne and brain damage and bewildering alienation, he was a golden boy still. Probably he thought he’d given his poor old stepmom the thrill of her life. One thing was certain: at that moment he’d loved her and was sorry for ever thinking ill of her—she’d packed his lunch!—and wanted to convey this in some meaningful way. Probably, too, he was drunk and/or high. As Scott’s only brother—a person who shared his sense of humor and some of his darker tendencies too—I considered explaining as much to Sandra, for what it was worth. Instead I said, “Welcome to the club.” “. . . No!” I nodded. “Tongue and all.” Sandra”
― Blake Bailey, The Splendid Things We Planned: A Family Portrait

“He got down on one knee and begged Nikky’s forgiveness while everyone in the office gathered around laughing and clapping—it was so cute—and really, you know, that’s what it took with Nikky! My own hands clapped mechanically, but I thought What the fuck what the fuck what the fuck . . . this, again, directed at me rather than them. I”
― Blake Bailey, The Splendid Things We Planned: A Family Portrait

“When a child is young,” Burck explained one night (perhaps he was relating Hauber’s analogy), “you can catch him if he falls. Then he”
― Blake Bailey, The Splendid Things We Planned: A Family Portrait