Quotes from A Lost Lady

Willa Cather ·  167 pages

Rating: (3.9K votes)


“Her husband had archaic ideas about jewels; a man bought them for his wife in acknowledgement of things he could not gracefully utter.”
― Willa Cather, quote from A Lost Lady


“He came to be very glad that he had known her, and that she had had a hand in breaking him in to life. He has known pretty women and clever ones since then,-- but never one like her, as she was in her best days. Her eyes, when they laughed for a moment into one`s own, seemed to promise a wild delight that he has not found in life. "I know where it is," they seemed to say, "I could show you!”
― Willa Cather, quote from A Lost Lady


“Oh, but it is bleak!” she murmured. “Suppose we should have to stay here all next winter, too,… and the next! What will become of me, Niel?” There was fear, unmistakable fright in her voice. “You see there is nothing for me to do. I get no exercise. I don’t skate; we didn’t in California, and my ankles are weak. I’ve always danced in the winter, there’s plenty of dancing at Colorado Springs. You wouldn’t believe how I miss it. I shall dance till I’m eighty.… I’ll be the waltzing grandmother! It’s good for me, I need it.” They”
― Willa Cather, quote from A Lost Lady


“I could feel his heart pump and his muscles strain," she said, "when he balanced himself and me on the rocks. I knew that if we fell, we’d go together; he would never drop me".”
― Willa Cather, quote from A Lost Lady


“Niel felt tonight that the right man could still save her, even now. She was still her own indomitable self, going through her old part,--but only the stage hands were left to listen to her. All those who had shared in fine undertakings and bright occasions were gone.”
― Willa Cather, quote from A Lost Lady



“. . . she had always the power of suggesting things much lovelier than herself, as the perfume of a single flower may call up the whole sweetness of spring.”
― Willa Cather, quote from A Lost Lady


About the author

Willa Cather
Born place: in Back Creek Valley, Virginia, The United States
Born date December 7, 1873
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“Jai, she pleaded quietly, if you hadn’t noticed, I’m a guts and glory kind of girl. I think I’d die trying to protect anyone I care about. It’s just the way I’m wired, I guess. I would die trying to protect Charlie because I love him. He’s my family, and I don’t want to lose any more family." She took another step so her body pressed flushed to him, her fingers falling to his lips. The sound of his shallow breathing emboldened her. "But Jai… I would die a hundred deaths to save you… because the thought of being here without you now, the thought of losing you… is unimaginable." Their eyes locked and heat bloomed in her cheeks as Jai pressed closer to her, his hand sliding across her lower back and gently guiding her even more tightly against him. "Jai, you have no idea how much I’ve fallen in love with you. I don’t think a person could fall any harder.”
― Samantha Young, quote from Borrowed Ember


“He loved books, never going to sea without a newly replenished library, compact but of the best.”
― Herman Melville, quote from Billy Budd and Other Stories


“For to tempt and to be tempted are things very nearly allied.”
― Robert K. Massie, quote from Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman


“I wanted to always be in control and yet it was so clear to me that my life—much more the lives of those I loved—was never meant to be manageable.”
― Bella Forrest, quote from A Gate of Night


“Saying something is “meant to be” is a cop out. It’s a way for people to deal when they screw up or when life hands them a bowl of shit stew. The things that are meant to be are the things we can’t control, the things we don’t cause, the things that happen regardless of who or what we are. Like sunsets and snow-fall and natural disasters. I’ve never believed hardship or suffering was meant to be. I’ve never believed relationships were meant to be. We choose. In large part, we choose. We create, we make mistakes, we burn bridges, we build new ones.”
― Amy Harmon, quote from The Song of David


Interesting books

The Debt of Tears
(423)
The Debt of Tears
by Cao Xueqin
The Last Battle of the Icemark
(2.1K)
The Last Battle of t...
by Stuart Hill
Backroads to Far Towns: Basho's Travel Journal
(2.6K)
Backroads to Far Tow...
by Matsuo Bashō
The Piano Man's Daughter
(4.2K)
The Piano Man's Daug...
by Timothy Findley
Bend Sinister
(3.3K)
Bend Sinister
by Vladimir Nabokov
The Killing Game
(26.4K)
The Killing Game
by Iris Johansen

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.