Pseudonymous Bosch · 364 pages
Rating: (44.3K votes)
“Only bad books have good endings.
If a book is any good, it's ending is always bad - because you don't want the book to end.”
“Books can also provoke emotions. And emotions sometimes are even more troublesome than ideas. Emotions have led people to do all sorts of things they later regret-like, oh, throwing a book at someone else.”
“Generally speaking, books don't cause much harm. Except when you read them, that is. Then they cause all kinds of problems.”
“But remember what I said about forgetting what I said?”
“It was like walking into a treasure trove of books, hoarded by pirate librarians.”
“*Appendix usually means "small outgrowth from large intestine," but in this case it means "additional information accompanying main text." Or are those really the same things? Think carefully before you insult this book.”
“Please be SILENT and LISTEN.
I am the SCHOOLMASTER
and you are in the CLASSROOM.
Just like ELEVEN PLUS TWO equals
TWELVE PLUS ONE,
And even a FUNERAL can be REAL FUN,
You will find my DICTIONARY
is quite INDICATORY.
If you want to read my story, just look...
THEN UNREAD.”
“Not all novelists are power-hungry madman. Some are power-hungry madwomen.”
“This book will not harm you unless someone throws it at you which is a possibilty never to be discounted.”
“Who needs to go somewhere when you can read about it.”
“One dictionary defines denouement as "a final part in which everything is made clear and no questions or surprises remain." By that definition, it is exactly the wrong word to describe this chapter. This chapter will make nothing clear; it will raise many questions; and it may even contain a surprise or two. But I say we call it the denouement anyway because the words sounds so sophisticated and French.”
“Some secrets are meant to be known- but once known you can never forget them.”
“Better to cry wolf over and over than never to cry wolf at all.”
“Why did so many grown-ups want to be young, she wondered, when it took so long to grow old? It was like going on a million-mile road trip then wanting to turn around without getting out of the car.”
“Before we do, I suggest you take a break. If you need to go to the bathroom, this is a good time. If you're sleepy, go to bed and save the next chapter for tomorrow. For the magician's story, you must have all your wits about you. No wandering minds allowed.”
“WARNING:
DO NOT READ BEYOND THIS PAGE!”
“The first expert said he had attention deficit disorder. The second expert said the first was out of order. One said he was autistic, another that he was artistic. One said he had Tourette's syndrome. One said he had Asperger's syndrome. And one said the problem was that his parents had Munchausen syndrome. Still another said all he needed was a good old-fashioned spanking.”
“Cassandra, when you want to speak to me, you should say 'Excuse me, Mrs. Johnson.' Then wait until you get my attention."
"Excuse me, Mrs. Johnson. Do I have your attention now?”
“You must have your wits about you. No wandering minds allowed.”
“If this was a normal cover for a normal book,I would tell it's FANTASTIC!GRIPPING!
(according to all book covers they're fantastic and gripping)”
“Happily, you don’t know how to find me. If you did, I’ve no doubt, you would try to bribe me to finish the story. I know how you are. I know how I am, too. I am very susceptible to bribes. As you’ve probably noticed, I have no self-control whatsoever. I like chocolate best. But I also have a fondness for cheese.”
“But there were other, vaguer, harder-to-pin-down feelings, like: a pit in the stomach that means something is either really good or really bad or both. A feeling of being old and young at once. A sense of beginnings and endings happening at the same time. A certainty that your life is changing, but an uncertainty about how it's changing and whether you want it to.”
“If you’re sleepy, go to bed and save the next chapter for tomorrow.”
“a nurse threatened to put their child up for adoption if they didn’t reach a decision.”
“WARNING: DO NOT READ BEYOND THIS PAGE!
Good.
Now I know I can trust you.
You’re curious. You’re brave. And you’re not afraid
to lead a life of crime.
But let’s get something straight: if, despite my
warning, you insist on reading this book, you can’t
hold me responsible for the consequences.
And, make no bones about it, this is a very
dangerous book.
No, it won’t blow up in your face. Or bite your head
off. Or tear you limb from limb.
It probably won’t injure you at all. Unless
somebody throws it at you, which is a possibility that
should never be discounted.
Generally speaking, books don’t cause much harm.
Except when you read them, that is. Then they cause
all kinds of problems.
Books can, for example, give you ideas. I don’t
know if you’ve ever had an idea before, but, if you
have, you know how much trouble an idea can get
you into.
Books can also provoke emotions. And emotions
sometimes are even more troublesome than ideas.
Emotions have led people to do all sorts of things
they later regret – like, oh, throwing a book at someone else.
But the main reason this book is so dangerous is
that it concerns a secret.
A big secret.”
“When a dark blue-black flame jumped up from the fire, the entire room”
“(Teeth, as you may know from watching television,”
“Man had created light and cut himself from the Heavens.”
“Not once did we ever have the money to buy them a single toy. AND”
“Curiouser and curiouser!” Cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English).”
“Those for whom things came easily usually made less of an effort, not more.”
“It’s Adria’s face I see when I think of home.”
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.