Quotes from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Nothing's perfect, the world's not perfect. But it's there for us, trying the best it can; that's what makes it so damn beautiful.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Humankind cannot gain something without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. This is Alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days, we really believed that to be the world's one, and only, truth.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Even when our eyes are closed, there's a whole world that exists outside ourselves and our dreams.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Water: 35 liters, Carbon: 20 kg, Ammonia: 4 liters, Lime:1.5 kg, Phosphrus: 800 g, salt: 250g, saltpeter:100g, Sulfer: 80g, Fluorine: 7.5 g, iron: 5.6 g, Silicon: 3g, and 15 other elements in small quantities.... thats the total chemical makeup of the average adult body. Modern science knows all of this, but there has never been a single example of succesful human trasmutation. It's like there's some missing ingredient..... Scientists have been trying to find it for hundreds of years, pouring tons of money into research, and to this day they don't have a theory. For that matter, the elements found in a human being is all junk that you can buy in any market with a child's allowence. Humans are pretty cheaply made.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Well, it's like that myth about the hero. He made wings out of wax so he could fly, but when he got too close to the Sun, to God, the wax melted and he crashed to the ground”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Is it alright to believe in the future where everyone can live in happiness?”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Ed, "I hate deserts. There is nothing but sand *collapses* If there was some grass I could turn it into bread. I'm starving! Huh? Hey! Al' where'd you go? Al? Hey!"

Al, "Down here! *Al's hand emerges from the sand beneath Ed and grabs Ed's leg*"

Ed, "AHH!!"

Al, "I sunk again. . ."

(cut to later, after Ed dug Al out)

Al, "I get full."

Ed, "Full of what? *kicks Al and sand falls out of his chest plate and buries Ed*"

Al, "Hahahaha. . .hahaha. . .haha. . . ha. . . *still laughing, inches away from Ed*"

Ed, "*bursts out of sand and starts running after Al* Get back here!"

Al, "What are you going to do?"

Ed, "Nothing!"

Al, "Than why are you chasing me?"

Ed, "Stop and you'll find out!"

Al, "I promise I won't get buried again!"

Ed, "Not unless it's by me!"

Al," Ed!"

Ed, "Rrrrrrrrr!”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Teachings that do not speak of pain have no meaning...because humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“To obtain something, something of equal value must be lost.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Life will come to an end, a return to dust from which we came... The spirit becomes memories living in the minds of people.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“Okay, I'm gonna do something slightly illegal now, so you just look the other way for a second.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“A painless lesson is one without any meaning, one who does not sacrifice anything cannot achieve anything.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

“There once was a hero who flew too close to the sun. His wings of wax fell apart and he plummeted to the earth.”
― Hiromu Arakawa, quote from Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 1

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Popular quotes

“To the sea, to the sea! The white gulls are crying,
The wind is blowing, and the white foam is flying.
West, west away, the round sun is falling,
Grey ship, grey ship, do you hear them calling,
The voices of my people that have gone before me?
I will leave, I will leave the woods that bore me;
For our days are ending and our years failing.
I will pass the wide waters lonely sailing.
Long are the waves on the Last Shore falling,
Sweet are the voices in the Lost Isle calling,
In Eressea, in Elvenhome that no man can discover,
Where the leaves fall not: land of my people forever!”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, quote from The Lord of the Rings

“War seems like a fine adventure, the greatest most of them will ever know. Then they get a taste of battle.

For some, that one taste is enough to break them. Others go on for years, until they lose count of all the battles they have fought in, but even a man who has survived a hundred fights can break in his hundred-and-first. Brothers watch their brothers die, fathers lose their sons, friends see their friends trying to hold their entrails in after they’ve been gutted by an axe.

They see the lord who led them there cut down, and some other lord shouts that they are his now, They take the wound, and when that’s still half-healed they take another. There is never enough to eat, their shoes fall to pieces from marching, their clothes are torn and rotting, and half of them are shitting in their breeches from drinking bad water.

If they want new boots or a warmer cloak or maybe a rusted iron half helm, they need to take them from a corpse, and before long they are stealing from the living too, from the small folk whose land they’re fighting in, men very like the men they used to be. They slaughter their sheep and steal their chickens, and from there it’s just a short step to carrying off their daughters too. And one day they look around and realize all their friends and kin are gone, that they are fighting beside strangers beneath a banner that they hardly recognize. They don’t know where they are or how to get back home and the lord they’re fighting for does not know their names, yet here he comes, shouting for them to form up, to make a line with their spears and scythes and sharpened hoes, to stand their ground. And the knights come down on them, faceless men clad in all steel, and the iron thunder of their charge seems to fill the world.

And the man breaks.”
― George R.R. Martin, quote from A Feast for Crows

“He poured the tumbler full. Drink up, he said. The world goes on. We have dancing nightly and this night is no exception. The straight and the winding way are one and now that you are here what do the years count since last we two met together? Men's memories are uncertain and the past that was differs little from the past that was not.”
― Cormac McCarthy, quote from Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West

“Ah, good conversation - there's nothing like it, is there? The air of ideas is the only air worth breathing.”
― Edith Wharton, quote from The Age of Innocence

“Kinder than is necessary. Because it's not enough to be kind. One should be kinder than needed.”
― R.J. Palacio, quote from Wonder

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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.

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.

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