“If a man has to ask for your trust, it's a sure sign that you should not give it. Trust should be earned inherently, without any verbal demands. Trust is knowing a man's character, knowing truth, and relying on that character and truth even when the odds seem against you.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“I listened long to your story,
Listened but could not hear.
When you chose to walk that path so overgrown,
I remained alone with my fear.
Cold silence covers the distance,
Stretches from shore to shore.
I follow in my mind your far-off journeying,
But I will walk that path no more.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“That isn't trust; that's foolishness! If a man has asked for your trust, it's a sure sign you should not give it. Trust should be earned inherently, without any verbal demands. Trust is knowing a man's character, knowing truth, and relying on that character and truth even when the odds seem against you. That is trust, my dear, not this leap in the dark..." (King Fidel)”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“See! See, she's gone and put her foot in her mouth again! Right in, heel and all.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“I chose to long ago, long before we met. When my father sent me to win you, I loved you already.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“Hope is such a beautiful dream that dies such a hideous death.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“If there is one thing in which I hold complete confidence, it is the conviction of my own desirability.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“Does that look like flowing gold?”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“Have you ever dreamed of one thing for so long, wanted nothing more than to have that dream fulfilled, only to find out that maybe it wasn't what you actually wanted all along?"
He juggled four stones lightly. "I believe that's called growing up.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“And now all this rot about invisible injuries and interrupting Prince Gervais as he and I don't see what business it is of I can do what I like and I think you're simply and that's that!"
Una paused there, wondering if what she'd just said had made a lick of sense. Judging from Prince Aethelbald's face, it hadn't.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“But my head is splitting in two!"
"It's doing a remarkably neat job since I can't see so much as a seam.”
― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, quote from Heartless
“It appears from these letters that for some time past you have been arraying my old friends against me by spreading reports about my mental condition.”
― August Strindberg, quote from The Father
“That’s the problem with the finite. You can open only one door at a time, and you’ll never know what was behind the door you didn’t open.”
― Jeanne Mackin, quote from The Beautiful American
“But I did feel the vertigo of death’s invitation, beckoning me towards the dark waters below. Only a newfound perspective and desire steadied my wavering soul. I came to realize, just in time, that suicide was far too easy – and obscenely cowardly – after someone I knew, not even half my age, had been through so much worse and still marched gloriously on.”
― Zack Love, quote from Anissa's Redemption
“I looked up at the shelf that held my books. I had dozens now. Faithful friends who took me on journeys without judgement and without pity.”
― Kaje Harper, quote from Nor Iron Bars a Cage
“I don't want anyone else but sometimes, surprisingly, there's someone, not the prettiest or the most available, but you know that in another life it would be her. Or him, don't you find? A small quickening. The room responds slightly to being entered. Like a raised blind. Nothing intended, and a long way from doing anything, but you catch the glint of being someone else's possibility, and it's a sort of politeness to show you haven't missed it, so you push it a little, well within safety, but there's that sense of a promise almost being made in the touching and kissing without which no one can seem to say good morning in this poney business and one more push would do it.
-The Real Thing (London 1982), p.73
Today, I bought a copy of the play at the co-op, I thought I should send it to you- out of a sort of politeness.”
― quote from The Divorce Papers
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.