bibliophile
It's a book store of the kind that's harder to find: cluttered, disorganized and rich with the scent of old books. Except for the wind chimes tingling at the door, it's silent. You can bring yourself to believe this is an entry into a new land, a magical shop on a mundane street.
intergalactic
The bridge at night looks like a grand landing strip for alien spacecraft.
neutrality
I give thanks to those who are buffers. The people who help keep tactless individuals more tactful, who help keep habitual combatants from talking or making eye contact. They're the people who fill the silence with neutral conversation. Thanks in part to them, we can get through a meal without a scene.
obliviousness
She stands at the door and declines the instructor's invitation to join the class. "I can only stick around for a few minutes," she says. For the next half hour, she rustles around in her multiple shopping bags and asks questions that take a while to arrive at the question mark.
prepackaged
The store is bright and bland, all wisdom neatly packaged in new books.
satiated
A pita bursting with meat and hummus and vegetables.
secondhand
Who has read this book before, and what did they think of it? Why did they highlight this passage? Why did they sell it?
