Quotes from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Now listen, we need to be quiet as mice. No, quieter than that. As quiet as . . . as . . .”
“Dead mice?” Reynie suggested.
“Perfect,” said Kate with an approving nod. “As quiet as dead mice.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“You've read half the books in this house? This whole house?"
"Well, approximately half." Sticky said. "To be more accurate, I suppose I've read more like" - his eyes went up as he calculated - "three sevenths? Yes, three sevenths."
"Only three sevenths?" said Kate, pretending to look disappointed. "And here I was prepared to be impressed.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“The answer to this riddle has a hole in the middle,
And some have been known to fall in it.
In tennis it's nothing, but it can be received,
And sometimes a person may win it.
Though not seen or heard it may be perceived,
Like princes or bees it's in clover.
The answer to this riddle has a hole in the middle,
And without it one cannot start over.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“So what's your team called?" asked Kate, twisting her legs into a pretzel-like configuration, "We're called the Winmates because we're inmates who win." Kate looked back and forth at Reynie and Constance, searching their expression for signs of delight.
"You gave yourselves a name?" asked Constance.
Now it was Kate's turn to be baffled. "You didn't? How can you have a team without a name?”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“I'm an orphan!" Constance cried gleefully. "I'm an orphan!" ~ The Prisoner's Dilemma”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“I've only just arrived, Kate. It may surprise you to learn that you were my top priority.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Somhow those Ten Men -- at the time they were called Recruiters, of course -- discovered that Constance had been at the library. Most likely one of their informants saw her come out, because it was on that very day that the brutes showed up and threatened the librarians. Who told them nothing, incidentally.'
'The same thing happened in Holland,' Kate reflected. 'You'd think these guys would learn their lesson -- librarians know how to keep quiet.'
'It helps to ask politely,' said Mr. Benedict”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“But you have said it too often, Mr. Benedict!" said Mrs. Perumal in an imperious tone that was quite out of character. "And if you continue in this vein, I'm afraid we'll be compelled to cut our visit short. Surely there are other establishments that would host an entire troup of guests - indefinitely and without reward - and not feel obliged to apologize for it!”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Books had been her means of escape; now they would be her refuge.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“You must understand something, George. The world's leaders create catastrophes and resolve them-- all at their own whimsy-- every single day. It is how the world runs. Lacking anything else to believe in, common people need to believe in their leaders' abilities to save them. It's true! Their emotional well-being-- and yes, their fate-- depends on the intelligence and skill of those who manipulate the days' disasters. And it should go without saying that the one who succeeds in taking the reins of leadership-- by whatever means-- is the most intelligent and skillful, and therefore most qualified to lead.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Have you ever had a dream in whig, having spied a deadly snake at your feet, you suddenly begin to see snakes everywhere - suddenly realize, in fact, that you're surrounded by them?"

Reynie was surprised. "I have had that dream. It's a nightmare."

"Indeed. And it strikes me as being rather like when a person first realizes the extent of wickedness in the world. That vision can become all-consuming - and in a way, it, too, is a nightmare, by which I mean that it is not quite a proper assessment of the state of things. For someone as observant as you, Reynie, deadly serpents always catch the eye. But if you find that serpents are all you see, you may not be looking hard enough.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Kate laid her hand against his cheek. "Why do you keep doing this? Why do you keep getting hurt?"

"Bad habit," Milligan mumbled.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Indeed, confident assurances and promises of fortune, when whispered into the right ears, often serve as substitutes for thinking at all.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Go on, Kate. I don't want to have fallen four stories for nothing." - Milligan”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“When the time comes to face McCracken, I don't want you anywhere near."

"I agree with Milligan!" Sticky whispered.

Milligan winked at him and quickly ushered the children back to the double doors.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Breakable codes and findable clues. Everything had been done on purpose.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“They all knew the adults were compelled to wear disguises in public. For a secret agent like Milligan, disguises were run-of-the-mill—the children were rather used to seeing him transform into a stranger—but it was comical to imagine dear old Mrs. Perumal, for instance, or the burly, mustachioed Moocho Brazos, dressing up to conceal their identities.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Mr. Benedict’s amusement sent him right off to sleep, for he had a condition called narcolepsy that caused him to nod off at unexpected moments. These episodes occurred most often when he experienced strong emotion, and especially when he was laughing. His assistants (who were also, as it happened, his adopted daughters) did what they could to protect him—he could hardly take two steps without Rhonda or Number Two shadowing him watchfully in case he should fall asleep and topple over—and Mr. Benedict guarded against such incidents himself by always wearing a green plaid suit, which he had discovered long ago to have a calming effect. Nevertheless, the occasional bout of sudden sleep was inevitable, and as a result Mr. Benedict’s thick white hair was perpetually tousled, and his face, as often as not, was unevenly shaven and marked with razor nicks. (Unfortunately nothing was more comical, Mr. Benedict said, than the sight of himself in the shaving mirror, where his bright green eyes and long, lumpy nose—together with a false white beard of shaving lather—put him in mind of Santa Claus.) He also wore spectacles of the sturdiest variety, the better to protect against shattering in the event of a fall. But as”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

“Errand day was when all the adult houseguests went out to deal with shopping and business.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, quote from The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

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