Jenny Han

“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. a burn for a burn. a life for a life. that's how all this got started. and that's how it's going to end.”

“I don't think relationships are just physicality. There are ways to show you care about someone, not just using your lips... Or any other body part.”

“I like to read non-fiction on my e-reader, but as for fiction, I usually like to have a copy to keep at home.”

“Moments, when lost, can't be found again. They're just gone.”

“But you never said anything! Not one frigging word, Lara Jean!”Automatically I say, “Don’t say ‘frig.’ ”“Not one frigging word,” Kitty repeats with a shake of her head.Peter cracks up, and I give him a dirty look. “It all happened really fast,” he offers. “There was barely time to tell anybody—”“Was I talking to you?” Kitty snaps. “No, I don’t think so. I was talking to my sister.”Peter’s eyes widen, and I can see him trying to keep a straight face.”

“Never say no when you really want to say yes.”

“I was writing my first book when I was in college. I was a teenager.”

“Would you rather live one perfect day over and over or live your life with no perfect days but just decent ones?”

“It's important for Asian American kids to see themselves in stories and to feel seen. They need to know that their stories are universal, too, that they, too, can fall in love in a teen movie. They don't have to be the sidekick; they can be the hero.”

“Food is a way to explore culture and ground the story in a specific time and place. I still remember the meals and snacks from my first novel, 'Shug': pork chops and applesauce and Coca-Cola and peanuts, which are very Southern. When a character has roots elsewhere, food is a way to connect with home and another culture.”

“But just because you bury something, that doesn’t mean it stops existing.”

“I didn't have that kind of friendship, the forever kind of friendship that will last your whole life through, no matter what.”

“My sister is my very favorite person, and I dedicated 'To All the Boys I've Loved Before' to her.”

“It’s hard to throw away history. It was like you were throwing away a part of yourself.”

“Love is scary: it changes it can go away. That's the part of the risk. I don't want to be scared anymore.”

“If two people are meant to be, they'll find their way to each other.”

“I think that sometimes we put undue pressure on stories featuring people of color, and I hope we get to a point where it's not such a rarity to see a person of color be the hero of a story, so that it can just be a story and not have to carry so much weight.”

“There is real power in seeing yourself as a hero. Because then you believe that you can do anything.”

“How was I supposed to know what’s real and what’s not? It feels like I’m the only one who doesn’t know the difference.”

“My sister and I are really close. She's my little sister.”