: Do I quote this, italicize, or something else? The sentence is: “Where do you want these?” Jon’s publisher asked, bobbling a box with the word books scrawled across the side. What do I

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I agree with @Lauren Ipsum that it is a matter of preference/style, but I disagree with her preference. I prefer the quotes:

“Where do you want these?” Jon’s publisher asked, bobbling a box with the word “books” scrawled across the side.

I feel that it is comparable to quoting what the box has said:
The senator said, “guilty.”
The box said, “books.”

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I think it's author preference. Either of these would be okay:

“Where do you want these?” Jon’s publisher asked, bobbling a box with the word “books” scrawled across the side.
“Where do you want these?” Jon’s publisher asked, bobbling a box with the word books scrawled across the side.

I would use the italics, but it's purely a preference, not a rule.

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