Quotes from The Guide

R.K. Narayan ·  224 pages

Rating: (7.1K votes)


“It seems to me that we generally do not have a correct measure of our own wisdom.”
― R.K. Narayan, quote from The Guide


“One often hears of suicide pacts. It seems to me a wonderful solution, like going on a long holiday. We could sit and talk one night perhaps, and sip our glasses of milk, and maybe we should wake up in a trouble-free world. I’d propose it this very minute if I were sure you would keep the pact, but I fear that I may go ahead and you may change your mind at the last second.
‘And have the responsibility of disposing of your body?’ I said, which was the worst thing I could have said.”
― R.K. Narayan, quote from The Guide


“A man who preferred to dress like a permanent tourist was just what a guide passionately looked for all his life. You may want to ask why I became a guide or when. I was a guide for the same reason as someone else is a signaler, porter, or guard. It is fated thus. Don’t laugh at my railway associations. The railways got into my blood very early in life. Engines with their tremendous clanging”
― R.K. Narayan, quote from The Guide


“The unbeaten brat will remain unlearned,”
― R.K. Narayan, quote from The Guide


“But it was like hiding a corpse. I’ve come to the conclusion that nothing in this world can be hidden or suppressed. All such attempts are like holding an umbrella to conceal the sun.”
― R.K. Narayan, quote from The Guide



“In a few months I was a seasoned guide. I had viewed myself as an amateur guide and a professional shopman, but now gradually I began to think of myself as a part-time shop-keeper and a full-time tourist guide.”
― R.K. Narayan, quote from The Guide


“But you are not my wife. You are a woman who will go to bed with anyone who flatters your antics. That’s”
― R.K. Narayan, quote from The Guide


“By the twelfth day of his fast, Raju himself has become a tourist attraction. Before an enormous crowd and an American television crew, the starving man is helped down to the drought-stricken river to pray:”
― R.K. Narayan, quote from The Guide


About the author

R.K. Narayan
Born place: in Chennai, India
Born date October 10, 1906
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“I think of him as part tiger. He's languid to the point of appearing almost lazy, and yellow or green, those eyes are framed by ridiculous lashes, set in a strong face with prominent cheekbones, full lips, and a sensuous smile.”
― Ella James, quote from Selling Scarlett


“I've seen so many versions of you. With me. Without me. Artist. Teacher. Graphic designer. But it's all, in the end, just life. We see it macro, like one big story, but when you're in it, it's all just day-to-day, right? And isn't that what you have to make your peace with?”
― Blake Crouch, quote from Dark Matter


“Clara wore a dress of brown and cream velvet, and her feathered mask, in comparison, made her look like a sparrow”
― Malinda Lo, quote from Ash


“A tree
doesn't know it's a tree.
It doesn't know how pretty its flowers are,
or how beautiful they smell,
or how soft and sweet its fruit is,
It can't feel how warm I am with my arms around it.
It can't hear me when I tell it these things.
It doesn't know anything.
I'm glad you're not a tree.”
― Craig Silvey, quote from Jasper Jones


“When you meet someone so different from yourself, in a good way, you don't even have to kiss to have fireworks go off. Its like fireworks in your heart all the time.”
― Lisa Schroeder, quote from I Heart You, You Haunt Me


Interesting books

A Heart So White
(5.8K)
A Heart So White
by Javier Marías
First Love
(14.3K)
First Love
by James Patterson
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
(25.4K)
Blind Willow, Sleepi...
by Haruki Murakami
How to Love
(14.7K)
How to Love
by Katie Cotugno
We Are the Ants
(15.3K)
We Are the Ants
by Shaun David Hutchinson
History Is All You Left Me
(14.7K)
History Is All You L...
by Adam Silvera

About BookQuoters

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.