“Great discoveries, Ganapathi, are often the result of making the wrong mistake at the right time.”
“They say every dog has its day, Ganapathi, but for this terrier twilight came before tea-time.”
“While he was alive, he was impossible to ignore; once he had gone, he was impossible to imitate.”
“...(It) is to one British colonial policy-maker or another that we owe the Boxer Rebellion, the Mau Mau insurrection, the Boer War, and the Boston Tea Party”
“All knowledge is transient, linked to the world around it and subject to change as the world changes.”
“If ever the Empire comes to ruin, Heaslop, mark my words, the British publisher will be to blame.”
“In debate he thought high and aimed low.”
“Gangaji’s truth required activism, not passivity.”
“The past is not necessarily a guide to the future, but it does partly help explain the present.”
“He leaned towards the young man, his eyes, mouth and face all round in concentration. ‘“There was a banned crow,”’ he intoned sonorously. ‘“There was a cold day.” Not bad, eh? I learned those on the boat. Sounds like perfect Urdu, I’m told.’ He paused and frowned. ‘The devil of it is remembering which one means, “close the door,” and which one will get someone to open it.”
“India is not an underdeveloped country but a highly developed one in an advanced state of decay.”
“The principles he stood for and the way in which he asserted them were always easier to admire than to follow.”
“While he was alive, he was impossible to ignore; once he had gone, he was impossible to imitate. When”
“If you believed in truth and cared enough to obtain it, Ganga affirmed, you had to be prepared actively to suffer for it. It was essential to accept punishment willingly in order to demonstrate the strength of one’s convictions. That”
“Basic truth about the colonies, Heaslop. Any time there’s trouble, you can put it down to books. Too many of the wrong ideas getting into the heads of the wrong sorts of people. If ever the Empire comes to ruin, Heaslop, mark my words, the British publisher will be to blame.”
“Bengalis say when offered cod, we still have other fish to fry.”
“there is nothing restrictive or self-limiting about the Indian identity it reasserts: it is large, eclectic and flexible, containing multitudes. I”
“If you tiptoe into cold water, you're missing out on the rush of plunging in headfirst.”
“This however, wasn't an ideal world, and no matter how hard I tried to think of an answer, I had nothing.”
“His father had always said, Son, the most important thing in life is to make a contribution. Who would have thought Kittridge’s contribution would be video-blogging from the front lines of the apocalypse?”
“You want me to level, here it is: I need you. I need you because I love you. Three months without you will be hell. But even if we weren’t together, I would still need you. You’re a good fighter, you’ve worked as a bodyguard, and you know magic. We may not have many magic users, but we don’t know if those packs do, and if they hit us with magic, we have no way to counter.” He spread his arms. “But I love you and I don’t want you to be hurt. I’m not going to ask you to come with me. That would be like stepping in front of a moving train and saying, ‘Hey, honey, come stand next to me.’”
I hopped off the wall and stood next to him. “Anytime.”
He just looked at me.
“I’ve never killed a train before. It might be fun to try.”
“Are you sure?”
“One time I was dying in a cage inside a palace that was flying over a magic jungle. And some idiot went in there, chased the palace down, fought his way through hundreds of rakshasas, and rescued me.”
“I remember,” he said.
“That’s when I realized you loved me,” I said. “I was in the cage and I heard you roar.”
“Tell any grizzled old cutthroat a sob story about a double-cross and a broken heart and he'll eat right out of your hand.”
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