“Usually, I was aware that other kids were bullying me, except occasionally when some girls in junior high… pretended to flirt with me and for a while. I did not understand they were making fun of me.”

“I never had a girl
Looking any better than you did
And all the kids at school
They were wishing they were me that night.”

“You were the best fun I ever had
You gave me a love that couldn't be bad
You taught me things that I thought were rude
Oh, ohhh, you were the best girl I ever knew
(You were the best girl I ever knew)
We were a couple so much in love
We gave to each other over and above
You made my life and I'm glad
Oh, ohhh, you were the best fun I ever had
You were the best fun I ever had”

“I remember when rock was young,
Me and Suzie had so much fun
Holding hands and skimming stones.
Had an old gold Chevy and a place of my own.
But the biggest kick I ever got
Was doing a thing called the Crocodile Rock.
While the other kids were Rocking Round the Clock,
We were hopping and bopping to the Crocodile Rock.”

“Did you read the instructions?” He shook his head. “Why, were you afraid they’d take your man card away?” “Are you going to help me or just make fun of me?” “Can’t I do both?”

“When I was a child the boys of the town never came near me except to make fun of me. I was almost always alone. Sometimes, finding me by chance among them, they hurled themselves against me, and not only with words. One day – and while he told me this his great eyes shone with an inner light - … they started to throw stones at me with more violence than usual, with the evilness which is found among children and the weak. I lost patience, and grabbing stones I too started to defend myself with such energy that my attackers were put to flight. Mario, I succeeded in beating them: I terrified them to such an extent that from that day they respected me and no longer annoyed me. I ran to my mother … and told her of my first victorious battle: she kissed me tenderly and it was the best prize that I could have wanted.”

“Something you see in the book is my tendency to self-bully. It started when I was a gay black kid growing up in the suburbs. I wasn’t bullied by individuals; kids weren’t shoving me into lockers or calling me slurs to my face. Shame—electrified by racism and homophobia—was enforced by the broader culture though, and in response, I started bullying myself. I started saying cruel things about myself to myself. While I’ve generally grown out of self-hate, an ease with being tough and candid about myself to myself is an integral aspect of my writing…”

“People made fun of me, the little kid who was making rock'n'roll records. But I knew. I would try to tell all the groups, we're doing something very important. Trust me. And it was very hard because these people didn't have that sense of destiny. They didn't know they were producing art that would change the world. I knew.”

“Books were this wonderful escape for me because I could open a book and disappear into it, and that was the only way out of that house when I was a kid.”

“If I let you get killed, the other body guards will make fun of me.”