Hook, Line and Sinker

A simple sentence has the ability to wield immense power. It can be the defining hook in transporting an already great story to the echelon of lifelong remembrance. Undoubtedly, each one of us can rattle off and quote a particular snippet from our favorite novel. The excerpt that struck a chord in such an altering way, often bringing forth an affirming nod, sometimes even moving to tears.

While characters may be fictional, their words give us something to relate to. Motivation to quiet naysayers, inspiration to climb life’s mountains, appreciation of relationships (even when lost), laughter when needing to celebrate or soothe. They are lines that may be mere words on a page, but linger because of how they resonate with our own personal journey.

Let’s take a look at some of the defining passages in Young Adult literature.

“We may not get to choose how we die, but we can choose how we live.”
          --Shaun David Hutchinson, We Are the Ants

"All those other things, they are the glass that contains the lamp, but you are the light inside."
          --Cassandra Clare, Clockwork Prince

“So I walked back to my room and collapsed on the bottom bunk, thinking that if people were rain, I was drizzle and she was a hurricane.”
          --John Green, Looking for Alaska

"You can never visit the same place twice. Each time, it’s a different story. By the very act of coming back, you wipe out what came before.”
          --Maureen Johnson, The Last Little Blue Envelope

“Things to do today: 1) Breathe in. 2) Breathe out.”
          --Ned Vizzini, It’s Kind of a Funny Story

“I wanted to explain that I am constantly overestimating and underestimating the human race — that rarely do I ever simply estimate it.”
          --Markus Zusak, The Book Thief

"Spoiler Alert: Love is worth everything, everything."
          --Nicola Yoon, Everything, Everything

“I think you can sort of slip out of your life and it can be hard to find a way back in.”
          --Jandy Nelson, I’ll Give You the Sun

“You could rattle the stars," she whispered. "You could do anything, if only you dared.”
          --Sarah J. Maas, Throne of Glass

“Someday in the far future, when the Milky Way has turned another cosmic click, will someone carry a chair to your grave site and keep you company forever? Can you imagine someone loving you that much?”
          --Jerry Spinelli, Stargirl

This musing brought to you by YA Librarian, Chris.