“Greed is good. Sex is easy. Youth is forever.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“I keep feeling that people are becoming less human and more animalistic. They seem to think less and feel less so that everyone is operating on a very primitive level. I wonder what you and I will see in our lifetimes. It seems so hopeless yet we must keep on trying ... I guess we can't escape being a product of the times, can we?”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“On the plane leaving Tokyo I’m sitting alone in back twisting the knobs on Etch-A-Sketch and Roger is next to me singing “Over the Rainbow” straight into my ear, things changing, falling apart, fading, another year, a few more moves, a hard person who doesn’t give a fuck, a boredom so monumental it humbles, arrangements so fleeting made by people you don’t even know that it requires you to lose any sense of reality you might have once acquired, expectations so unreasonable you become superstitious about ever matching them. Roger offers me a joint and I take a drag and stare out the window and I relax for a moment when the lights of Tokyo, which I never realized is an island, vanish from view but this feeling only lasts a moment because Roger is telling me that other lights in other cities, in other countries, on other planets, are coming into view soon.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“About a week ago I was sitting in L.A.'s chicest nightclub with a few friends and the DJ was playing Yaz and Bowie and the videos were on and I was on my third gin and tonic and I realized that no matter where I am it's always the same. Camden, New York, L.A., Palm Springs - it really doesn't seem to matter. Maybe this should be disturbing but it's really not. I find it kind of comforting.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“Just read this fabulous screenplay. A remake of Camus's The Stranger with Meursault as a bi break-dancing punk rocker. Randy showed it to me. I loved it. Randy thinks "basically unfilmable" and that filming an orange rolling around a parking lot for three hours would draw a bigger audience.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“Looking at Tim, one cannot help feeling great waves of uncertainty, an absence of aim, of purpose, as if he is a person who simply doesn’t matter.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“Danny is on my bed and depressed because Ricky was picked up by a break dancer at the Odyssey on the night of the Duran Duran look-alike contest and murdered.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“did another line and believed him because it is easier to move through the motions than not to.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“I’m tired, William. I’m tired of you. I’m tired of these parties. I’m tired.” “The tone of your voice could have fooled me,” he says, taking my arm roughly. “Just smile, okay? Just until we get past the photographers, then I don’t give a fuck what you do.” “You … are … awful,” I say. “You’re not much better,” he says, pulling me along.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“Tim glances over at me and I avert my gaze and an imagined sense of imposed peace washes calmly over the two of us, answering my question.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“Судя по всему, мать уже две недели постоянно убирается на чердаке и находит одни и те же фотографии с Рождества в Нью-Йорке. Я это Рождество помню смутно. Как она несколько часов выбирала мне платье в сочельник, причесывала длинными, легкими взмахами. Рождественское шоу в Радио-Сити, и как я ела там полосатую карамельку — она походила на исхудавшего напуганного Санта-Клауса. Как отец напился вечером в Плазе, как родители ссорились в такси по дороге в Карлайл, а ночью я слышала их ругань и, конечно, звон стекла за стеной. Рождественский ужин в La Grenouille, где отец порывался поцеловать маму, а та отворачивалась. Но лучше всего, так отчетливо, что меня аж скручивает, я помню одну вещь: в ту поездку мы не фотографировались.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“Не поймешь, чего он хочет. Смотришь на Тима, и тебя словно обдает волнами неуверенности, отсутствия цели, задачи, будто перед тобой человек, который совсем не имеет значения.”
― Bret Easton Ellis, quote from The Informers
“Love Forever
If I were the trees ...
I would turn my leaves to gold and scatter them toward the sky so they would circle about your head and fall in piles at your feet...
so you might know wonder.
If I were the mountains ...
I would crumble down and lift you up so you could see all of my secret places, where the rivers flow and the animals run wild ...
so you might know freedom.
If I were the ocean ...
I would raise you onto my gentle waves and carry you across the seas to swim with the whales and the dolphins in the moonlit waters,
so you might know peace.
If I were the stars ...
I would sparkle like never before and fall from the sky as gentle rain,
so that you would always look towards heaven and know that you can reach the stars.
If I were the moon ...
I would scoop you up and sail you through the sky and show you the Earth below in all its wonder and beauty,
so you might know that all the Earth is at your command.
If I were the sun ...
I would warm and glow like never before and light the sky with orange and pink,
so you would gaze upward and always know the glory of heaven.
But I am me ...
and since I am the one who loves you, I will wrap you in my arms and kiss you and love you with all of my heart,
and this I will do until ...
the mountains crumble down ...
and the oceans dry up ...
and the stars fall from the sky ...
and the sun and moon burn out ...
And that is forever.”
― Camron Wright, quote from The Rent Collector
“Heads half-glued together, Abby and Lara had engaged in rapid-fire chitchat as they all hurried across campus.”
― Madeleine Roux, quote from Sanctum
“So...did she just agree to sponsor the charter?" asked Katar.
"I think so," Miri whispered.
"You think so?"Katar grabbed the paper from Miri. "If I present this in session and the queen doesn't offer her sponsorship, 'I think so' isn't going to save my head."
"Your head will be fine," said Miri. "It's your neck you should worry about.”
― Shannon Hale, quote from Palace of Stone
“As he finally stopped fighting sleep, he wondered if maybe just occasionally the gods designed a woman fit for a king or a prince and then gave her to an ordinary man. Maybe they did such a thing once in a while, knowing an ordinary man would treasure her more, love her better. Maybe they even let him keep her — for a while.”
― Ellen O'Connell, quote from Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold
“Magic, madam, is like wine and, if you are not used to it, it will make you drunk.”
― Susanna Clarke, quote from The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories
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.