Quotes from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Deep down we've never been who we think we once were, and we only remember what never happened.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“One mustn't dream of one's future; one must earn it.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Destiny doesn't do home visits... you have to go for it yourself.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“I've always thought that anyone who needs to join a herd so badly must be a bit of a sheep himself.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Everything can be forgiven in this world, save telling the truth.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“A good liar knows that the most efficient lie is always a truth that has had a key piece removed from it.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“The world's very small when you don't have anywhere to go.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“That's what happens when people reach old age; nobody remembers they've been bastards too.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“There are times and places where not to be anyone is more honourable than to be someone.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“In those days, Christmas still retained a certain aura of magic and mystery. The powdery light of winter, the hopeful expressions of people who lived among shadows and silence, lent that setting a slight air of promise in which at least children and those who had learned the art of forgetting could still believe.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“People with a meagre soul always try to make others feel small too.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“I don't belong to any side. What's more, I think flags are nothing but painted rags that represent rancid emotions. Just seeing someone wrapped up in one of them, spewing out hymns, badges and speeches, gives me the runs. I've always thought that anyone who needs to join a herd so badly must be a bit of a sheep himself”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“None of us are what we once were.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“... deep down nobody is bad, only frightened.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“I think today will be the day. Today our luck will change,' I proclaimed on the wings of the first coffee of the day, pure optimism in a liquid state.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Sometimes I think that Darwin made a mistake and that in fact man is descended from the pig, because eight out of every ten members of the human race are swine, and as crooked as a hog's tail.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Madmen always think it's the others who are mad.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Those times, against all expectations, were turning out to be good times. Then he felt afraid, because he knew they couldn't last long and those stolen drops of happiness and peace would evaporate.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“In principle I'm an atheist, although in fact I have a lot of faith”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“A madman is one who considers himself sane and thinks that fools don’t belong in his rank.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Sometimes one forgets that not everyone in this world is a bastard.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Hay épocas y lugares en los que no ser nadie es más honorable que ser alguien.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Afterwards, once you lost all hope, time began to go faster and the senseless days deadened your soul.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Those were the words she wanted to hear and she finally surrendered to the temptation of believing them.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Men are like chestnuts they sell in the street: they’re all hot and they all smell good when you buy them, but when you take them out of the paper cone you realise that most of them are rotten inside.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Why is it that all wars are won by bankers?”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Cuando Martín declaró en el juicio que la única buena costumbre que él defendía era la de leer y que el resto era asunto de cada uno, el juez añadió otros diez años de condena a los no sé cuanto que ya le habían caído.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“When I saw my friend kissing the woman he loved it occurred to me that this moment, this instant stolen from time and from God, was worth all the days of misery that had brought us to this place and the many others that were doubtless waiting for us on our return to life. And that everything that was decent and clean and pure in this world and everything for which it was worth living and breathing was in those lips, in those hands and in the look of that fortunate couple who, I know, would be together for the rest of their lives.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“You should get more sun and fresh air. The other day I read in the paper that vitamin D increases our faith in fellow humans.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

“Let's shake hands and be friends, but please, I beg you, stop farting like that, because I'm beginning to hallucinate and in my dreams I see Comrade Joseph Stalin doing the Charleston.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, quote from The Prisoner of Heaven

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Popular quotes

“Every time he calls, I nag him to study.” “I hear that boys don’t like to be nagged.” “Me too, but it’s irresistible. You always want to take the boy and mold him into something better.”
― Caroline B. Cooney, quote from The Voice on the Radio

“The past no longer exists, and the future is not here yet.”
― Thich Nhat Hanh, quote from You Are Here: Discovering the Magic of the Present Moment

“While I have the floor, here's a question that's been bothering me for some time. Why do so few writers of heroic or epic fantasy ever deal with the fundamental quandary of their novels . . . that so many of them take place in cultures that are rigid, hierarchical, stratified, and in essence oppressive? What is so appealing about feudalism, that so many free citizens of an educated commonwealth like ours love reading about and picturing life under hereditary lords?

Why should the deposed prince or princess in every clichéd tale be chosen to lead the quest against the Dark Lord? Why not elect a new leader by merit, instead of clinging to the inbred scions of a failed royal line? Why not ask the pompous, patronizing, "good" wizard for something useful, such as flush toilets, movable type, or electricity for every home in the kingdom? Given half a chance, the sons and daughters of peasants would rather not grow up to be servants. It seems bizarre for modern folk to pine for a way of life our ancestors rightfully fought desperately to escape.”
― David Brin, quote from Glory Season

“I thought you were going to CALL me? I call this texting ;-)

The reply came back within seconds:

I find it easier to take rejection in writing...”
― Karen Mahoney, quote from The Iron Witch

“It’s an accepted fact that all writers are crazy; even the normal ones are weird.”
― William Goldman, quote from Adventures in the Screen Trade

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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.