Quotes from A Countess Below Stairs

Eva Ibbotson ·  383 pages

Rating: (16.7K votes)


“And so they played some of the world's loveliest piano music - the exiled homesick girl, the humiliated, tired old man. Not properly. Better than that.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


“Slowly, Anna put up a hand to his muzzle and began to scratch that spot behind the ear where large dogs keep their souls.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


“When you're sad, my Little Star, go out of doors. It's always better underneath the open sky.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


“She's like snow in Russian," said Anna. "Snow in the evening when the sun sets and it looks like Alpengluhen, you know? And if snow had a scent it would smell like that [the rose]....”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


“Shadows are cool and peaceful places for those whose minds are overstocked with treasure.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs



“How dare you suppose that I don't know who you are or what you are? That I don't understand what I see? Do you take me for some kind of besotted schoolboy? It is unspeakable! You could weigh as much as a hippopotamus and shave your head and wear a wig and it wouldn't make a difference to me. I never said you were beautiful. I never thought it. I said that you were you.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


“For an instant she felt his touch on her cheek then he stepped back. There that was my ration for all eternity. People have died for less I dare say.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


“To show too much joy in a place such as this would be unseemly but, as he padded toward her, his tail was extended in a manner which would make wagging possible should all go as expected.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


“The dowager rose and slipped from her pew. There was the sound of tearing silk as she threw up her arms to embrace her son. Then:
"Oh, Rupert, darling," she exclaimed in tones of theatrical despair, "don't you see? The game's up!”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


“To this waltz, born in a distant, snowbound country out of longing for just such a flower-scented summer night as this, Rupert and Anna dance. They were under no illusions. The glittering chandeliers, the gold mirrors with their draped acanthus leaves, the plangent violins might be the stuff of romance, but this was no romance. It was a moment in a lifeboat before it sank beneath the waves; a walk across the sunlit courtyard towards the firing squad. This waltz was all they had.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs



“Muriel sprinkled salt over her haddock mousse. ‘It is not easy to be specific, but both morally and hygienically there is . . . a kind of laxness which I had not expected.’ Dr Lightbody leant forward. The discussion of hygienic and moral laxness with a beautiful woman in a softly shaded restaurant was exactly to his taste.”
― Eva Ibbotson, quote from A Countess Below Stairs


About the author

Eva Ibbotson
Born place: in Vienna, Austria
Born date January 21, 1925
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“His helmet touched hers, and even through all the clothes and gear, she felt him squeeze her. "It's just like making love, Snow White, let go and feel," he said in a low voice, sending sparks ripping through her, squashing the fear and replacing it with desire.”
― Natasza Waters, quote from Code Name: Ghost


“The feathery palms that lined the drainage canals, the acacia thorns and sycamores, all glistened with the sheen of new, pale-green leaves, and in Khaemwaset’s gardens the vivid clusters of flowers had begun to bloom with an abandon that assaulted the eyes and filled the nostrils with delight.”
― Pauline Gedge, quote from Scroll of Saqqara


“I really like it, " he murmured once more.
Say something. Anything. Tell him you love him and want to have his puppies. "Haven't you ever had tea before?”
― Cecy Robson, quote from Sealed with a Curse


“You suck, Gameknight, Dreadlord typed from jail, the respawn point after your character died in this game of team PvP. Yeah, thanks a lot, Salz added. LOL, Gameknight replied then turned and headed back into the heart of the battle.”
― Mark Cheverton, quote from Invasion of the Overworld: A Minecraft Novel


“Up to this point, all I knew were beaten paths, tattooed with footprints, and I had come to the understanding that they were not much fun to travel because so many people were waiting for you at the end, wondering what took you so long.”
― Kevin Wilson, quote from Tunneling to the Center of the Earth: Stories


Interesting books

Smilla's Sense of Snow
(34.1K)
Smilla's Sense of Sn...
by Peter Høeg
Hex Hall
(118.6K)
Hex Hall
by Rachel Hawkins
Point of Retreat
(129K)
Point of Retreat
by Colleen Hoover
Evernight
(69K)
Evernight
by Claudia Gray
The Iron Queen
(87.7K)
The Iron Queen
by Julie Kagawa
The Runaway Jury
(234.8K)
The Runaway Jury
by John Grisham

About BookQuoters

BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.

We thoughtfully gather quotes from our favorite books, both classic and current, and choose the ones that are most thought-provoking. Each quote represents a book that is interesting, well written and has potential to enhance the reader’s life. We also accept submissions from our visitors and will select the quotes we feel are most appealing to the BookQuoters community.

Founded in 2023, BookQuoters has quickly become a large and vibrant community of people who share an affinity for books. Books are seen by some as a throwback to a previous world; conversely, gleaning the main ideas of a book via a quote or a quick summary is typical of the Information Age but is a habit disdained by some diehard readers. We feel that we have the best of both worlds at BookQuoters; we read books cover-to-cover but offer you some of the highlights. We hope you’ll join us.