John Lewis-Stempel · 308 pages
Rating: (692 votes)
“you rise at dawn in May you can savour the world before the pandemonium din of the Industrial Revolution and 24/7 shopping.”
― John Lewis-Stempel, quote from Meadowland: the private life of an English field
“To stand alone in a field in England and listen to the morning chorus of the birds is to remember why life is precious.”
― John Lewis-Stempel, quote from Meadowland: the private life of an English field
“Almost all the things I love are to do with grass. Geese, sheep, cows, horses. Even dogs eat grass.”
― John Lewis-Stempel, quote from Meadowland: the private life of an English field
“They killed farming a year or so later. And they killed it by putting cabs on tractors. No longer was the farmer alive to the elements, or even close to the earth.”
― John Lewis-Stempel, quote from Meadowland: the private life of an English field
“I have decided to sleep under the stars... Tonight heaven is my roof, and the hedges my walls... The field folds me in soft wings.”
― John Lewis-Stempel, quote from Meadowland: the private life of an English field
“And nothing in nature is wasted. The bodies of the dead meadow ants will go to nourish the soil of the meadow. Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust. Flesh to flesh.”
― John Lewis-Stempel, quote from Meadowland: the private life of an English field
“High summer and one can hear the universe; so overwhelming is e accumulated sound of growing in the meadow and in hedges, of pollen being released, of particles moving in the heat, that all the minute motions together create a continuous him: the sound of summer.”
― John Lewis-Stempel, quote from Meadowland: the private life of an English field
“And in that moment of sun and joy, Lupe knew why she loved and also hated Salvador. He gave her wings. He didn't try to lock her in, as had Jaime and the other boys she'd known. No, she could dream her wildest dreams with him and so she loved him for this; but she also hated him because it made her fearful. No one in her family was like this. They were always very cautious.”
― Victor Villaseñor, quote from Rain of Gold
“We all owe everyone for everything that happens in our lives. But it's not owing like a debt to one person--it's really that we owe everyone for everything. Our whole lives can change in an instant--so each person that keeps that from happening, no matter how small a role they play, is also responsible for all of it. Just by giving friendship and love, you keep the people around you from giving up--and each expression of friendship or love may be the one that makes all the difference.”
― Will Schwalbe, quote from The End of Your Life Book Club
“Time for Wine Tasting 101.
“So here’s how this works. When tasting a wine, as opposed to casual drinking, there are four basic steps you need to remember: sight, smell, taste, then spit or swallow.”
Nick paused at that last part and cocked his head. “And your personal preference on the latter would be…?”
“Only lightweights spit.”
His right eye twitched.”
― Julie James, quote from A Lot like Love
“Whenever he thought he knew the truth it merged into another truth.”
― Louise Erdrich, quote from The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse
“The art of life is to deal with problems as they arise, rather than destroy one’s spirit by worrying about them too far in advance. Especially”
― Robert Harris, quote from Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome
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