Quotes from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“Each of us in our own small sphere can do something. And we can, we must.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“This book made me feel strangely awkward, because I'm afraid of finding my own story in it. I take books too seriously.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“It's a wonderful, inspiring feeling to have real friends who love and understand you. I have never had that feeling before.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“There is beauty in the midst of tragedy. As if beauty were condensing in the heart of ugliness. It's very strange.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“What will become of me? I do not know where am I going or what tomorrow will bring.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“I really don't know what's happened to me, but I have changed from top to toe. I am living in a strange mixture of memories of yesterday and today.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“What people need in order to write is an observant spirit and a broad mind.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“The impression that what is extraordinary is real, and that the real is the extraordinary.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“Now that everybody thinks he looks a little Slavic, it annoys me. I don't want that to be the reason I find him charming. I found him charming for no reason, because he is who he is.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“There can be no deeper despair, no pain less easy to assuage, than losing a husband when you are young.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“It seemed to me that I was suddenly in the presence of incosolable, unavoidable, and immense pain.

The thought of that death hunted me and turned everything else into nothing.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“...For I do now know that it is cowardly. We do not have the right to think only of poetry on this earth. It is magical, but utterly selfish.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

“And then there is pride. I do not want any part of it. The idea that you can write for other people, so as to be praised by them, horrifies me. Maybe there is also the feeling that "other people" won't understand you completely, that they make you dirty and mutilate you, and that you let yourself be cheapened like mere merchandise.”
― Hélène Berr, quote from The Journal of Hélène Berr

About the author

Popular quotes

“We kill all the caterpillars, then complain there are no butterflies.”
― John Marsden, quote from The Dead of Night

“You are a son, a brother, a nephew, a cousin--I don't know what--to no end of people. I am just a man. Here I stand before you. A man with a mind. Did it ever occur to you how a man who had never heard a word of warm affection or praise in his life would think on matters on which you would think first with or against your class, your domestic tradition--your fireside prejudices?... Did you ever consider how a man like that would feel? I have no domestic tradition. I have nothing to think against. My tradition is historical. What have I to look back to but that national past from which you gentlemen want to wrench away your future? Am I to let my intelligence, my aspirations towards a better lot, be robbed of the only thing it has to go upon at the will of violent enthusiasts? You come from your province, but all this land is mine--or I have nothing. No doubt you shall be looked upon as a martyr some day--a sort of hero--a political saint. But I beg to be excused. I am content in fitting myself to be a worker. And what can you people do by scattering a few drops of blood on the snow? On this Immensity. On this unhappy Immensity! I tell you...[what] it needs is not a lot of haunting phantoms that I could walk through--but a man!”
― Joseph Conrad, quote from Under Western Eyes

“Jai sighed again."What is it about this kid?"
Disgusted by his seeming callousness,Ari shot him a dirty look."Don't you have any friends,Jai?"
She was suprised when he actually,glanced up to meet her eyes. "One."
She stopped frozen. "Yeah?" She smiled tentatively,amazed he actually oered something personal."What's he or she like?"
Jai rolled his eyes."He's...a friend."
"Wow,you're descriptive skills are outstanding...”
― Samantha Young, quote from Smokeless Fire

“I am madly, ridiculously, passionately in love with you. I don’t care about your past. Your race does nothing to change my feelings. I love you, you stubborn little fool. Is that clear enough for you?”
― Y.S. Lee, quote from The Traitor in the Tunnel

“Hatred is the most accessible and comprehensive of all the unifying agents. Mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a god, but never without a belief in a devil.”
― Eric Hoffer, quote from The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements

Interesting books

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.