“All men are born free: just not for long.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“It was from us they learnt the secret of life: that we grow old without growing wise. They realized that nothing happened when we grew up: no blinding light on the road to Damascus, no sudden feeling of maturity.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“I used to think it was clever to confuse comedy with tragedy. Now i wish i could distinguish them.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“He hated to be alone, but people bored him. Being alone was like being tired, but unable to sleep.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“Smiley himself was one of those solitaires who seem to have come into the world fully educated at the age of eighteen. Obscurity was his nature, as well as his profession. The byways of espionage are not populated by the brash and colourful adventurers of fiction. A man who, like Smiley, has lived and worked for years among his country's enemies learns only one prayer: that he may never, never be noticed. Assimilation is his highest aim, he learns to love the crowds who pass him in the street without a glance; he clings to them for his anonimity and his safety. His fear makes him servile - he could embrace the shoppers who jostle him in their impatience, and force him from the pavement. He could adore the officials, the police, the bus conductors, for the terse indifference of their attitudes. (ch. 9)”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“Urgent equals ephemeral, and ephemeral equals unimportant.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“Only adults had nervous breakdowns in those days, so the methods of survival for boys who refused to join the system were animal cunning, “internal immigration” as the Germans call it, or simply getting the hell out. I practised the first two, then opted for the third and took myself to Switzerland.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“Smiley was not opposed to social distinctions but he liked to make his own.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“It was like feeding a small child. You couldn't over load the spoon.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“Shane was horrid to her, always sneering at her because she was honest and simple about the things she liked. Shane hated Stella—I think it was because Stella didn’t want to be a lady of quality. She was quite happy to be herself. That’s what really worried Shane. Shane likes people to compete so that she can make fools of them.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“He hated to be alone, but people bored him.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“There was a fellow called Smiley married Ann Sercomb, Lord Sawley’s cousin. Damned pretty girl, Ann was, and went and married this fellow. Some funny little beggar in the Civil Service with an OBE and a gold watch. Sawley was damned annoyed.”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“right…What do you do for a living, Smiley?” “After the war I was at Oxford for a bit. Teaching and research. I’m in London now.” “One of those clever coves, eh?”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
“He hated to be alone, but people bored him. Being alone was like being tired, but unable”
― John le Carré, quote from A Murder of Quality
John le Carré
Born place: in Poole, Dorset, England, The United Kingdom
Born date October 19, 1931
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“Life without any wonder left in it is flat and stale.”
― David Eddings, quote from The Belgariad, Vol. 1: Pawn of Prophecy / Queen of Sorcery / Magician's Gambit
“He smiled, a little smile, but the sight of it made my breathing speed up. "I've always needed you. For my entire life,' I said in a whisper,'and I'm always going to need you.”
― Sarah Alderson, quote from Losing Lila
“Only the lower natures forget themselves and become something new. Thus the butterfly has entirely forgotten that it was a caterpillar, perhaps it may in turn so entirely forget it was a butterfly that is becomes a fish.”
― Søren Kierkegaard, quote from Fear and Trembling
“On a June day, a young woman in a summer dress steps off a Chicago-bound bus into a small midwestern town. She doesn't intend to stay. She is just passing through. Yet her stopping here has a reason and it is part of a story that you will never forget.”
― Danielle Steel, quote from The Gift
“لم أشك لحظة حين صاحت بي ذلك اليوم : (إنني أحتقرك !). إن هذه العبارة التي، لو قالها فم آخر ربما لم تعن شيئًا، كانت تتلبس في نظرها معنى دقيقًا محددًا: كانت تحتقرني حقًا، وليس ثمة بعد الآن مجال لفعل شيء. وحتى لو كنت أجهل كل شيء عن طبع إيملي، فإن اللهجة التي لفظت بها هذه العبارة لم تكن تترك أي شك: كانت لهجة الكلمة لدى ولادتها، منبثقة توًا من الشيء نفسه، منطوقة من قبل انسان ربما كان يستعملها للمرة الأولى، وهو قد استمدها - بدافع من الضرورة - من ارث اللغة العريق القدم، من غير أن يبحث عنها، وعلى غير إرادة منه تقريبًا.”
― Alberto Moravia, quote from Contempt
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The Girl at MidnightBookQuoters 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.
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