Bloodline Quotes

“Remember the good, only the good. Don’t borrow trouble from the past.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“Every woman should have pearls,” Mom said, “to remind ourselves that grit under pressure becomes beauty.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“While their beneficence ensured no one they approved of ever went hungry, sick or homeless in Lilydale, they also used their influence to control the local population, harass those who stepped out of line and create a culture of fear that had neighbors telling on neighbors.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“I notice Catherine’s ceramic collectibles for the first time, really see them in a blinding flash of lightning. They’re scattered around the house, but here in the dining room, they have a dedicated hutch. They’re all blackface caricatures. Mammy and Pappy saltshakers, skin the darkest black, aprons the whitest white. Ashtrays that are only pitch-black heads, mouths open to swallow the detritus. A blond-haired, black-skinned baby eating a slice of watermelon twice his size, his face so gape-mouthed that he appears more fish than human. An Amos and Andy plate.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“She’s aged a decade since I last saw her, her skin faded gray, her eyes muggy. She is heartbreak come to life.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“Smile lines bloom beyond the edges of his sunglasses.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“The thunder and rain argue with each other outside.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“I’m practicing my crocheting at the dinner table, sweat soaking my shapeless shift. Though I’ve grown unspeakably huge, Dr. Krause has assured me there’s only one baby in there. I am so large that it is difficult to cook, but I still prepare all the meals for Stan and Dorothy. “You’re very good at that.” It’s Dorothy. I don’t know how long she’s been watching me knit. She steps behind me and pulls sticky hair from my neck. I shiver at the human touch. She begins twisting the short bits into tufts. “Catherine says you’re pretending.” My needles click. “Pretending what?”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“Paulie Aandeg’s been found. After twenty-four years, the boy in the sailor suit has come home.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“On September 5, 1944, six-year-old Victor John “Jackie” Theel of Paynesville, Minnesota, walked to his first day of morning kindergarten wearing a blue sailor suit with a square-cut collar. The matching long pants were secured at the waist, a safety pin replacing the back button. Towheaded Jackie sported new black shoes and a fresh scratch below his right eye. His older brother held his hand on the walk. At lunch, Jackie’s teacher allowed him to leave school despite instructions otherwise from his mother.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“The receptionist, an army bunker of a woman, leads me back.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“It must be important. I tiptoe back outside.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“They’re all blackface caricatures.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline

“Paulie Aandeg disappeared on September 5. September 5 is my due date.”
― Jess Lourey, Bloodline