Quotes from City of Flowers

“My guard will run you through if he catches you looking at my face," said Arianna.
"I don't think so. I think it might be treason to kill a duke," said Luciano.
"But you're not a duke," said Arianna.
"I will be if you marry me," said Luciano.
"Yes, you would be," said Arianna.
"Would?"
"If you are asking me."
"I'm asking."
"And if I accepted."
"Do you?"
"I do. With all my heart.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“There are some choices you can only make once. You can't go back to where you made a choice and then take the other one.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“We are in a tight corner, now, I agree. But we have been in tight corners before and come out of them. You have to be brave a little longer.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“I often think how unadventurous my life must seem from the outside, though I do like my job.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“Hé Colin... Ik geloof dat je weer eens slordig met je zaad bent omgesprongen.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“Sky?' herhaalde Nicholas. 'Die naam hoor je niet vaak, hè?'
Sky zag zijn kans schoon. 'Falco hoor je ook niet vaak,' zei hij kalm.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“Ik benijd Benedetta di Chimici haar plekje onder de grond, waar ze niet langer voor het leven van haar kinderen hoeft te vrezen. - Graziella Nucci”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“Ik ben een goede bewindsvrouwe voor mijn stad,' zei Arianna, 'maar ik ben ook een meisje. En ik ben verliefd op een ander. Als ik niet met hem kan trouwen, zal ik ongetrouwd blijven.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“Ik wil een normaal gesprek met je voeren en omdat jij zo lang bent, kan ik dat niet doen als je er niet bij gaat zitten. Dan krijg ik kramp in mijn nek. - Silvia”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“En opeens zag Enrico helder voor zich wat er met zijn verloofde was gebeurd.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

“Ja toch? Hertog Luciano van Bellezza, gemaal van de schone duchessa?'
'Ja,' zei Arianna. 'Dat zou kunnen.'
'Zou kunnen?'
'Dat moet je me eerst vragen.
'Ik vraag je.'
'En ik moet eerst ja zeggen.'
'Zeg je ja?'
'Ja,' zei Arianna. 'Met heel mijn hart.'
En ze gooide haar masker weg.”
― Mary Hoffman, quote from City of Flowers

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Popular quotes

“What franticke fit (quoth he) hath thus distraught
Thee, foolish man, so rash a doome to give?
What justice ever other judgement taught,
But he should die, who merites not to live?
None else to death this man despayring drive,
But his owne guiltie mind deserving death.
Is then unjust to each his due to give?
Or let him die, that loatheth living breath?
Or let him die at ease, that liveth here uneath?

Who travels by the wearie wandring way,
To come unto his wished home in haste,
And meetes a flood, that doth his passage stay,
Is not great grace to helpe him over past,
Or free his feet, that in the myre sticke fast?
Most envious man, that grieves at neighbours good,
And fond, that joyest in the woe thou hast,
Why wilt not let him passe, that long hath stood
Upon the banke, yet wilt thy selfe not passe the flood?

He there does now enjoy eternall rest
And happie ease, which thou doest want and crave,
And further from it daily wanderest:
What if some litle paine the passage have,
That makes fraile flesh to feare the bitter wave?
Is not short paine well borne, that brings long ease,
And layes the soule to sleepe in quiet grave?
Sleepe after toyle, port after stormie seas,
Ease after warre, death after life does greatly please.

[...]

Is not his deed, what ever thing is donne,
In heaven and earth? did not he all create
To die againe? all ends that was begonne.
Their times in his eternall booke of fate
Are written sure, and have their certaine date.
Who then can strive with strong necessitie,
That holds the world in his still chaunging state,
Or shunne the death ordaynd by destinie?
When houre of death is come, let none aske whence, nor why.

The lenger life, I wote the greater sin,
The greater sin, the greater punishment:
All those great battels, which thou boasts to win,
Through strife, and bloud-shed, and avengement,
Now praysd, hereafter deare thou shalt repent:
For life must life, and bloud must bloud repay.
Is not enough thy evill life forespent?
For he, that once hath missed the right way,
The further he doth goe, the further he doth stray.

Then do no further goe, no further stray,
But here lie downe, and to thy rest betake,
Th'ill to prevent, that life ensewen may.
For what hath life, that may it loved make,
And gives not rather cause it to forsake?
Feare, sicknesse, age, losse, labour, sorrow, strife,
Paine, hunger, cold, that makes the hart to quake;
And ever fickle fortune rageth rife,
All which, and thousands mo do make a loathsome life.

Thou wretched man, of death hast greatest need,
If in true ballance thou wilt weigh thy state:
For never knight, that dared warlike deede,
More lucklesse disaventures did amate:
Witnesse the dongeon deepe, wherein of late
Thy life shut up, for death so oft did call;
And though good lucke prolonged hath thy date,
Yet death then, would the like mishaps forestall,
Into the which hereafter thou maiest happen fall.

Why then doest thou, O man of sin, desire
To draw thy dayes forth to their last degree?
Is not the measure of thy sinfull hire
High heaped up with huge iniquitie,
Against the day of wrath, to burden thee?
Is not enough, that to this Ladie milde
Thou falsed hast thy faith with perjurie,
And sold thy selfe to serve Duessa vilde,
With whom in all abuse thou hast thy selfe defilde?

Is not he just, that all this doth behold
From highest heaven, and beares an equall eye?
Shall he thy sins up in his knowledge fold,
And guiltie be of thine impietie?
Is not his law, Let every sinner die:
Die shall all flesh? what then must needs be donne,
Is it not better to doe willinglie,
Then linger, till the glasse be all out ronne?
Death is the end of woes: die soone, O faeries sonne.”
― Edmund Spenser, quote from The Faerie Queene

“For a long while we just stood there, looking down at the profound and fleshless grin. The body had apparently once lain in the attitude of an embrace, but now the long sleep that outlasts love, that conquers even the
grimace of love, had cuckolded him. What was left of him, rotted beneath what was left of the nightshirt, had become inextricable from the bed in which he lay; and upon him and upon the pillow beside him lay that even coating of the patient and biding dust.
Then we noticed that in the second pillow was the indentation of a head. One of us lifted something from it, and leaning forward, that faint and invisible dust dry and acrid in the nostrils, we saw a long strand of iron-grey hair.”
― William Faulkner, quote from A Rose for Emily and Other Stories

“I don’t understand,” said the scientist, “why you lemmings all rush down to the sea and drown yourselves.” “How curious,” said the lemming. “The one thing I don’t understand is why you human beings don’t.”
― James Thurber, quote from The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

“perceiving the world” entails a process of apprehending whatever presents itself to us. This particular “perceiving” is done with our senses and with our will.”
― Carlos Castaneda, quote from A Separate Reality

“There's no bright side," Phineas objected. "The man's got no gonads."
"But she hit the target," Carlos said.
"The man has got no gonads," Phineas repeated forcefully.
"It was an accident." Caitlyn set her gun on the counter. "I was aiming for his chest."
"You blew his pecker to Connecticut," Phineas muttered.
She grinned. "I think you have issues, Phineas. It was only a paper pecker.”
― Kerrelyn Sparks, quote from Eat Prey Love

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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.

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