"But the pleasure isn't owning the person. The pleasure is this. Having another contender in the room with you." -Philip Roth, The Human Stain
Dedication
To my wife, Sarah Urist Green, anagrammatically: Her great Russian, Grin has treasure, A great risen rush, She is a rut-ranger; Anguish arrester; Sister; haranguer; Treasure-sharing, Heart-reassuring Signature Sharer Easing rare hurts.
First words
The morning after noted child prodigy Colin Singleton graduated from high school and got dumped for the nineteenth time by a girl named Katherine, he took a bath.
Quotations
You can love someone so much, he thought. But you can never love people as much as you miss them.
Books are the ultimate Dumpees: put them down and they'll wait for you forever; pay attention to them and they always love you back.
I don't think you can ever fill the empty space with the thing you lost. ... That's what I realized: if I did get her back somehow, she wouldn't fill the hole that losing her created.
Last words
Colin's skin was alive with the feeling of connection to everyone in that car and everyone not in it. And he was feeling not-unique in the very best possible way.
