Permanent Record
Quotes from the Book
It's crazy how lonely it is to be in a family.
There was more than one type of perfectionist. And that I qualified because the kind of perfectionist I was, was the kind that abandoned everything if I wasn’t good enough at it. And that’s why I couldn’t finish tasks.
People don’t really want to know how you’re doing. They want to wait until you’re done telling them so they can tell you how they’re doing.
I find that the more I hide, the more presentable I am to the world
We all have the same boring problems. Sometimes the best thing you can do is talk about it.
It's easier to watch myself be sad than actually feel sad.
Sisters never stand a chance to be friends. We're pitted against each other from the moment we are born. A daughter is a treasure. Two is a tax.
Everything about my existence feels like a costume.
What's the point? The planet is on fire and everything is random.
You're only as sick as your secrets. The second you talk about it, pfth. She blows a raspberry and waggles her fingers into the air. It all starts to get a little better. Humans need to share their darkest parts. Unburdening makes you closer to everyone.
Humans need to share their darkest parts. Unburdening makes you closer to everyone. There’s that thing that all addicts have, that you’re a piece of shit in the center of the universe. That everybody’s obsessed with the ways you fall short. But the truth is, we all have the same, boring problems. Sometimes the best thing you can do is talk about it. It makes no sense, but glory if it doesn’t work like a charm.
People aren't abandoning you just because they go.
I know what it's like to want to leave. How it feels when the home you have is a mirage, an illusion. But I know that wherever I am, if June's around, I'll be ok.
Fernweh is rooted in pain, or sickness and sadness,” says Gina. “It’s directly translated as ‘far pain’ or ‘far sickness’ as opposed to ‘heimweh’ or ‘homesickness.’ But it’s also longing for the unknown, since the familiar is stifling or challenging. The foreign can seem fantastic, exalted, since its possibilities are infinite. We have no data or experience around it. But once we arrive and the faraway is known and becomes familiar, then what? You’ve got all that energy and longing and possibility that no longer has anywhere to go. It’s got nowhere to be invested, nowhere to live.
You know how it is, church-folk are all up in your business until that shit actually gets dark. Then, they just think you’re contagious.
He holds me longer than I’d expected him to. I leech everything I can out of the hug. Bleed it.
Marriages are the original tiny cult.
New York is just a place. It's the people who will become a home for you.
When I recognize people, it lets me hope that maybe they recognize me, too.
that no one’s ever looking at me. Really looking.
I'm thrilled at the devastation. Destroying beautiful things so carelessly and so fast.
Don't you find it fascinating that we don't know what we don't know?" -Jayne "It is fascinating. Knowing that we don't know everything leaves room for mindfulness. It opens up the possibility that thoughts and feelings can change. Perception is a lot more subjective that anyone feels in the moment." -Gina
Have you ever considered that it isn’t a place that will improve your life? That there is no such thing as a geographic cure?
It’s when you really don’t want to ask for help that you might need it the most.
The planet is on fire and everything is random.
Cancer must feel like such a betrayal, knowing that somewhere deep in your body you're manufacturing tiny bombs that detonate and catch fire
You know, the trick to taking care of your sister is letting her think she’s taking care of you.
I have literal fucking cancer but we both know… we both know that you’re sicker than me.
Men don’t enjoy the taste of lipstick though they like the look of it.
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About Mary H.K. Choi
More by Mary H.K. Choi
Permanent Record
Emergency Contact
About the book
From New York Times bestselling author Mary H.K. Choi comes a funny and emotional story about two estranged sisters switching places and committing insurance fraud to save one of their lives.
Jayne Baek is barely getting by. She shuffles through fashion school, saddled with a deadbeat boyfriend, clout-chasing friends, and a wretched eating disorder that she’s not fully ready to confront. But that’s New York City, right? At least she isn’t in Texas anymore, and is finally living in a city that feels right for her.
On the other hand, her sister June is dazzlingly rich with a high-flying finance job and a massive apartment. Unlike Jayne, June has never struggled a day in her life. Until she’s diagnosed with uterine cancer.
Suddenly, these estranged sisters who have nothing in common are living together. Because sisterly obligations are kind of important when one of you is dying.
Book details
- First published
- 2021
- Author
- Mary H.K. Choi
- Genre
- Fiction
- Goodreads rating
- 3.94 (32k ratings)
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