Because of Winn-Dixie

And now I move on to Newbery Honor books. This was my first and I loved it. The kind of book I want to read again, to share with others. A redemptive book about the amazing power of truth and forgiveness and friendship to make the world a better place.

Second read: If I could give this book ten stars, I would. Have you read it? If you haven't, get a copy. It's amazing.

Here are a few quotes I want to remember...

“There ain't no way you can hold onto something that wants to go, you understand? You can only love what you got while you got it.”

“You can't always judge people by the things they done. You got to judge them by what they are doing now.”

“Do you think everybody misses somebody? Like I miss my mama?” “Mmmm-hmmm,” said Gloria. She closed her eyes. “I believe, sometimes, that the whole world has an aching heart.”

“Dear God, thank you for warm summer nights and candlelight and good food. But thank you most of all for friends. We appreciate the complicated and wonderful gifts you give us in each other. And we appreciate the task you put down before us, of loving each other the best we can, even as you love us. We pray in Christ's name, Amen.”

“Thinking about her was the same as the hole you keep on feeling with your tongue after you lose a tooth. Time after time, my mind kept going to that empty spot, the spot where I felt like she should be.”

“I lay there and thought how life was like a Littmus Lozenge, how the sweet and the sad were all mixed up together and how hard it was to separate them out. It was confusing.”