Cozy Reading Times

“Vitrine would have shouted curses at him again, but their eyes locked, and suddenly she no longer needed the words. A piece of herself, some dark and deadly and spiteful piece, flew from her and into his eyes, making her a part of him, and for a second time in as many seconds, he flinched in shock. His face was bloody, and her curse would live inside for as long as he would last, which was to say, she would live inside him forever.”
― Nghi Vo, The City in Glass

“Certain things are always with us.” She counted on her fingers. “One: scarcity. Limited space and resources. Two: the need to maintain order, which, when things are scarce, is always under threat. Three: surplus. Too many people, not enough stuff: the result is extra people. What are you going to do with all these extra people? If you’re smart, you’ll turn them into a business. That’s the Hold. So there will always be a Hold. Because the Ship is a problem. And the Hold is the answer.”
― Sofia Samatar, The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain

“I would never trust that my world wouldn't be turned upside down, that racism wouldn't make it so that every generation in my family would have to start over from the bottom and claw our way back to the top. But I also felt the unshakable confidence that comes from living through that experience. We might have to start over, penniless, but we were of the ilk that knew we could.”
― Betty Shamieh, Too Soon

“The only thing that feels real to me is that
my mother is gone.
In some ways, this year after I lost my mom has been a time of excavation. I spend it trying to discover who she was.”
― Betty Shamieh, Too Soon