Ross Thomas

I think she must have lived where all the sad poets live, in that secret place where everything hurts all the time.

The laugh came then, a marvelous honking hoorah so infectious that Dill felt it should be quarantined.

She was wearing a dark-red swimsuit consisting of two small triangles up above and a mere suggestion of something down below. If she took everything off, Dill thought, she would look a lot less naked.

The eyes were larger and gray and in a certain light looked soft, gentle, and even innocent. Then the light would change, the innocence would vanish, and the eyes looked like year-old ice.

The eyes were large and gray and in a certain light looked soft, gentle, and even innocent. Then the light would change, the innocence would vanish, and the eyes looked like year-old ice.

Dying in vain isn't really all that bad since nearly everyone does it. It's the living in vain you really have to watch out for.