Quotes by Wendelin Van Draanen

Its easy to look back and see it, and its easy to give the advice. But the sad fact is, most people dont look beneath the surface until its too late.

The room fell quiet. And as I read down the list of over one hundred and fifty eight-grade boys, I realized that to me, there had only ever been one boy.

Some of us get dipped in flat, some in satin, some in gloss.... He turned to me. But every once in a while, you find someone whos iridescent, and when you do, nothing will ever compare.

...Next time youre faced with a choice, do the right thing. It hurts everyone less in the long run.

You cant dwell on what might have been...and its not fair to condemn him for something he hasnt done.

Sometimes a little discomfort in the beginning can save a whole lot of pain down the road.

What Im expecting is for you to behave like the gentleman I always thought you were.

A painting is more than the sum of its parts, he would tell me, and then go on to explain how the cow by itself is just a cow, and the meadow by itself is just grass and flowers, and the sun peeking through the trees is just a beam of light, but put them all together and youve got magic.

Proper lighting is everything, Julianna.

What he did to my heart was sheer, inexplicable, magic.

I had liked him for all the wrong reasons.

You want me to be a man,older than you, who goes by the name of Roullard.

Sometimes I get so caught up in my own problems that I forget how amazing the world is.

Words cant fix my life.Words cant give me a family.Words cant do jack.You may be a teacher, Ms. Leone, but face it: You dont know squat.

I operate under the assumption that people dont notice the good in me. Thats just how things always seem to play out. I get blamed, while con-artist kids like Venus, and Camille, and Gemma get believed. But the rescue lady noticed. In the background, just observing, she noticed.

Ones character is set at an early age. The choices you make now will affect you for the rest of your life. I hate to see you swim out so far you cant swim back.

Ones character is set at an early age, son. The choices you make now will affect you for the rest of your life. He was quiet for a minute then dropped the curtain and said, I hate to see you swim out so far you cant swim back.

Its to have people see her instead of her condition. Thats all that anybody with a disability wants. Dont sum up the person based on what you see, or what you dont understand; get to know them.

All of a sudden I didnt fit in anywhere. Not at school, not at home...and every time I turned around, another person Id known forever felt like a stranger to me. Even I felt like a stranger to me.

There’s no winning arguments with your parents, so why get all pumped up over them? It is way better to dive down and get out of the way than it is to get clobbered by some parental tidal wave.