“Goldie was a believer in the imperial project, which is to say, in the civilising power of social progress.”

“Stationery gets me excited because it has an individual character, unlike computers, which may be convenient but are generic and bland.”

“We never see other people anyway, only the monsters we make of them.”

“But these weren't the kind of monsters that had tentacles and rotting skin, the kind a seven-year-old might be able to wrap his mind around--they were monsters with human faces, in crisp uniforms, ...”

“You guys know about vampires? You know, vampires have no reflections in a mirror? Theres this idea that monsters dont have reflections in a mirror. And what Ive always thought isnt that monsters d...”