Quotes from The Little White Bird

J.M. Barrie ·  224 pages

Rating: (761 votes)


“The reason birds can fly and we can't is simply because they have perfect faith, for to have faith is to have wings.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird


“It is glorious fun racing down the Hump, but you can't do it on windy days because then you are not there, but the fallen leaves do it instead of you. There is almost nothing that has such a keen sense of fun as a fallen leaf.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird


“When you were a bird you knew the fairies pretty well, and you remember a good deal about them in your babyhood, which it is a great pity you can't write down, for gradually you forget, and I have heard of children who declared that they had never once seen a fairy.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird


“I have seen him climbing a tree while she stood beneath him in unutterable anguish; she had to let him climb, for boys must be brave, but I am sure that, as she watched him, she fell from every branch.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird


“Oh, you mysterious girls, when you are fifty-two we shall find you out; you must come into the open then. If the mouth has fallen sourly yours the blame: all the meanness your youth concealed have been gathering in your face. But the pretty thoughts and sweet ways and dear, forgotten kindness linger there also, to bloom in your twilight like evening primroses.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird



“It is idle to attempt to overtake a pretty young woman carrying pork chops. I was now determined to be done with her. First, however, to find out their abode, which was probably within easy distance of the shop. I even conceived them lured into taking their house by the advertisement, "Conveniently situation for the Pork Emporium.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird


“She has been putting qualities into David, altering him, turning him forever on a lathe since the day she first knew him, and indeed long before, and all so deftly that he is still called a child of nature.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird


“You can be good in the Broad Walk all the time, but not at the Round Pond, and the reason is that you forget, and, when you remember, you are so wet that you may as well be wetter.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird


“Surely a spirited old lady may be the prettiest sight in the world.”
― J.M. Barrie, quote from The Little White Bird


About the author

J.M. Barrie
Born place: in Kirriemuir, Angus, Scotland
Born date May 9, 1860
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“When the air gets heavy so it's hard to breathe, you know what's coming. The birds come down from the ridges and hide in the hollows and in the pines. Heavy black clouds float over the mountain, and you run for the cabin.

From the cabin porch we would watch the big bars of light that stand for a full second, maybe two, on the mountaintop, running out feelers or lightning wire in all directions before they're jerked back into the sky. Cracking claps of sound, so sharp you know something has split wide open--then the thunder rolls and rumbles over the ridges and back through the hollows. I was pretty near sure, a time or two, that the mountains was falling down, but Granpa said they wasn't. Which of course, they didn't.

Then it comes again--and rolls blue fireballs of rocks on the ridge tops and splatters the blue in the air. The trees whip and bend in the sudden rushes of wind, and the sweep of heavy rain comes thunking from the clouds in big drops, letting you know there's some real frog-strangling sheets of water coming close behind.”
― Forrest Carter, quote from The Education of Little Tree


“Cats gravitate to kitchens like rocks gravitate to gravity.”
― Terry Pratchett, quote from Witches Abroad


“I believe the test of government is the contentment of the people.”
― Lian Hearn, quote from Across the Nightingale Floor


“A perfect night... a perfect forever”
― Mary E. Pearson, quote from The Kiss of Deception


“Look what a hard time I've given him. But no matter how many times I've pushed him away, he always comes back around again. And I wouldn't want it any other way.”
― Jennifer E. Smith, quote from The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight


Interesting books

Warcross
(29.4K)
Warcross
by Marie Lu
Under Fire
(1.1K)
Under Fire
by Henri Barbusse
The Moonflower Vine
(3.9K)
The Moonflower Vine
by Jetta Carleton
The Sociological Imagination
(2K)
The Sociological Ima...
by C. Wright Mills
Human.4
(5.5K)
Human.4
by Mike A. Lancaster
Practical Ethics
(2.1K)
Practical Ethics
by Peter Singer

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.