“What happens when perfection isn't good enough?”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“Everyone in the world was programmed by the place they were born, hemmed in by their beliefs, but you had to at least try to grow your own brain.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“And over all those sleepy weeks, the dream always ended the same way, with the dragon coming for the princess saying the same words every time....
"Face it, Tally-wa, you're Special.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“Their reasons don't mean anything unless I have a choice.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“With everything so perfect, reality seemed somehow fragile, as if the slightest interruption could imperil her pretty future... all of it felt as tenuous as a soap bubble, shivering and empty.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“Left alone, human beings are a plague. They multiply relentlessly, consuming every resource, destroying everything they touch.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“At least one thing was consistent about her life: It just kept on getting more complicated.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“Sometimes it felt like her life was a series of falls from ever-greater heights.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“Being pretty-minded is simply the natural state for most people. They want to be vapid and lazy and vain . . . and selfish. It only takes a twist to lock in that part of their personalities.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“And the worst thing was, there were no mirrors out there in the wild, so the princess was left wondering whether she in fact was still beautiful... or if the fall had changed the story completely.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“It's not the way Zane looks, David," she said, her voice trembling with anger. "It's because he makes me bubbly, and because we took a lot of risks together. It could just as easily be me lying there, and he would stay with me if it was."
"It's just programming!"
"No. It's because I love him.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“...humanity is a disease, a cancer on the body of the world.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“My name is tally youngblood and my mind is very ugly”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“It's just programming"
"No. It's because I love him”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“So, there was this beautiful princess.
She was locked in a high tower(...)She was stuck up there(...)So the only thing was to jump.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“Nature was tough, it could be dangerous, but unlike Dr. Cable or shay, or peris-unlike people in general-it made sense. The problems it threw at you could be solved rationally.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“But it's always taking a risk, when you ... kiss someone new.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“You and David could both be right. Maybe human beings are programmed … to help one another, even to fall in love. But just because it's human nature doesn't make it bad, Tally. Besides, we had a whole city of pretties to choose from, and we chose each other."-Zane”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“So, there was this beautiful princess.
She was locked in a high tower, one whose smart walls had cleaver holes in them that could give her anything: food, a clique of fantastic friends, wonderful clothes. And, best of all, there was this mirror on the wall, so that the princess could look at her beautiful self all day long.
The only problem with the tower was that there way no way out. The builders had forgotten to put in an elevator, or even a set of stairs. She was stuck up there.
One day, the princess realized that she was bored. The view from the tower--gentle hills, fields of white flowers, and a deep, dark forest--fascinated her. She started spending more time looking out the window than at her own reflection, as is often the case with troublesome girls.
And it was pretty clear that no prince was showing up, or at least that he was really late.
So the only thing was to jump.
The hole in the wall gave her a lovely parasol to catch her when she fell, and a wonderful new dress to wear in the fields and forest, and a brass key to make sure she could get back into the tower if she needed to. But the princess, laughing pridefully, tossed the key into the fireplace, convinced she would never need to return to the tower. Without another glance in the mirror, she strolled out onto the balcony and stepped off into midair.
The thing was, it was a long way down, a lot farther than the princess had expected, and the parasol turned out to be total crap. As she fell, the princess realized she should have asked for a bungee jacket or a parachute or something better than a parasol, you know?
She struck the ground hard, and lay there in a crumpled heap, smarting and confused, wondering how things had worked out this way. There was no prince around to pick her up, her new dress was ruined, and thanks to her pride, she had no way back into the tower.
And the worst thing was, there were no mirrors out there in the wild, so the princess was left wondering whether she in fact was still beautiful . . . or if the fall had changed the story completely.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“The beauty of the world…has two edges, one of laughter, one of anguish, cutting the heart asunder.
—Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own (part 3, Pretties)”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“She couldn't disappoint the whole village. There were no wallscreens here, no newsfeeds or satellites bands, and touring soccer teams were no doubt few and far between. (...), that made stories a valuable commodity, and it probably wasn't very often that a stranger dropped in from the sky.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“She needed Andrew Simpson Smith, it was that simple. And he had spent his life training to help people like her. Gods.
"Okay, Andrew. But let's leave today. I'm in a hurry."
"Of course. Today." He stroked the place where his slight beard was beginning to grow. "These ruins where your friends are waiting? Where are they?"
Tally glances up at the sun, still low enough to indicate the eastern horizon. After a moment's calculation, she pointed off to the northwest, back toward the city and beyond that, the Rusty Ruins. "About a week's walk that way."
"A week?"
"That means seven days."
"Yes, I know the gods' calendar," he said huffily. "But a whole week?"
"Yeah. That's not so far, is it?" The hunters had been tireless on their march the night before.
He shook his head, an awed expression on his face. "But that is beyond the edge of the world.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“Maybe human beings are programmed...to help one another, even to fall in love. But just because it's human nature doesn't make it bad...”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“It's exciting. But you can't keep fighting the way things are forever.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“A milli-Helen is enough beauty to launch exactly one ship”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“-Pero siempre se corre un riesgo cuando uno... besa a alguien nuevo”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
“Everyone in the world was programmed by the place they were born, hemmed in by their beliefs, but you had to at least try to grow your own brain.”
― Scott Westerfeld, quote from Pretties
Scott Westerfeld
Born place: in Dallas, Texas, The United States
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“Simple is hard enough. Who needs complicated?”
― Teri Terry, quote from Slated
“Magnus threw the monkey a fig. The monkey took the fig.
"There," said Magnus. "Let us consider the matter settled."
The monkey advanced, chewing in a menacing fashion.
"I rather wonder what I am doing here. I enjoy city life, you know," Magnus observed. "The glittering lights, the constant companionship, the liquid entertainment. The lack of sudden monkeys."
He ignored Giuliana's advice and took a smart step back, and also threw another piece of fruit. The monkey did not take the bait this time. He coiled and rattled out a growl, and Magnus took several more steps back and into a tree.
Magnus flailed on impact, was briefly grateful that nobody was watching him and expecting him to be a sophisticated warlock, and had a monkey assault launched directly to his face.
He shouted, spun, and sprinted through the rain forest. He did not even think to drop the fruit. It fell one by one in a bright cascade as he ran for his life from the simian menace. He heard it in hot pursuit and fled faster, until all his fruit was gone and he ran right into Ragnor.
"Have a care!" Ragnor snapped.
He detailed his terrible monkey adventure twice.
"But of course you should have retreated at once from the dominant male," Giuliana said. "Are you an idiot? You are extremely lucky he was distracted from ripping out your throat by the fruit. He thought you were trying to steal his females."
"Pardon me, but we did not have the time to exchange that kind of personal information," Magnus said. "I could not have known! Moreover, I wish to assure both of you that I did not make any amorous advances on female monkeys." He paused and winked. "I didn't actually see any, so I never got the chance."
Ragnor looked very regretful about all the choices that had led to his being in this place and especially in this company. Later he stooped and hissed, low enough so Giuliana could not hear and in a way that reminded Magnus horribly of his monkey nemesis: "Did you forget that you can do magic?"
Magnus spared a moment to toss a disdainful look over his shoulder.
"I am not going to ensorcel a monkey! Honestly, Ragnor. What do you take me for?”
― Cassandra Clare, quote from The Bane Chronicles
“This book will take you two days to read. Did you even see the cover? It’s mostly pink. If you’re reading this book every night for months, something is not right.”
― Mindy Kaling, quote from Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)
“Dr. Lecter, erect as a dancer and carrying Starling in his arms, came out from behind the gate, walked barefoot out of the barn, through the pigs. Dr. Lecter walked through the sea of tossing backs and bloodspray in the barn.”
― Thomas Harris, quote from Hannibal
“You’re too good for me.”
He laughed. “Are we talking about the same person? The selfish fucker who curses and yells, blows up cars and beats up people, because he has a temper he can’t control? You know, the one who drinks like a fish and fries his brain with drugs? That person is too good for you?”
She shook her head. “I’m talking about the boy who shared his chocolate bar with me when he probably never shared anything before, who gave me his mama’s favourite book, because he thought I deserved to read. The one who seems to be constantly fixing me up when I get hurt. I’m talking about the boy who treats me like I’m a regular girl, the one who desperately needs his bedroom cleaned and laundry washed but chooses to live in a mess and wear dirty clothes, because he’s too polite to ask the girl he kisses for help.”
“Wow,” Carmine said. “I’d like to meet that motherfucker.”
― J.M. Darhower, quote from Sempre
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