Quotes from The Story of Lucy Gault

William Trevor ·  240 pages

Rating: (5.3K votes)


“Memories can be everything if we choose to make them so. But you are right: you mustn't do that. That is for me, and I shall do it.”
― William Trevor, quote from The Story of Lucy Gault


“As the surface of the seashore rocks were pitted by by the waves and gathered limpets that further disguised what lay beneath, so time made truth of what appeared to be. The days that passed, in becoming weeks, still did not disturb the surface an assumption had created. The weather of a beautiful summer continued with neither sign nor hint that credence had been misplaced. The single sandal found among the rocks became a sodden image of death; and as the keening on the pier at Kilauran traditionally marked distres brought by the sea, so did silence at Lahardane.”
― William Trevor, quote from The Story of Lucy Gault


“He was an old hand at the Camp now, his hollow countenance and the intensity of his averted gaze familiar to all who came and went around him. Some had carried to other camps a description of his lanky, quiet presence, had spoken of his strangeness, his regular, lone attendance before the chapel statue. He had made no friends, but in his duties was conscientious and persevering and reliable, known for such qualities to the officers who commanded him. He had dug latrines, metalled roads, adequately performed cookhouse duties, followed instructions as to the upkeep of equipment, and was the first to volunteer when volunteers were called for. That he bore his torment with fortitude was known to no one.”
― William Trevor, quote from The Story of Lucy Gault


“All this occupied his thoughts when he revisited the places of his war. Tramping over soil fed by the blood of men he had led and whose faces now stirred in his memory, it was his wife's response that came - as if in compensation for too little said before - when he wondered why his wandering had led him back to these old battlefields: in his sixty-ninth year he was establishing his survivor's status.”
― William Trevor, quote from The Story of Lucy Gault


“Calamity shaped a life when, long ago, chance was so cruel.”
― William Trevor, quote from The Story of Lucy Gault



About the author

William Trevor
Born place: in Mitchelstown, County Cork, Ireland
Born date May 24, 1928
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“Boon and Watt had the bad—or perhaps good—fortune to come of age during one of rock’s most abject periods. “That Seventies stuff, the Journey, Boston, Foreigner stuff, it was lame,” Watt says. “If it weren’t for those type of bands we never would have had the nerve to be a band. But I guess you need bad things to make good things. It’s like with farming—if you want to grow a good crop, you need a lot of manure.”
― Michael Azerrad, quote from Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981-1991


“The willingness to show up changes us, It makes us a little braver each time.”
― Brené Brown, quote from Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead


“You’d hate me later if we do this and you have feelings for someone else.”
“No excuses,” he snarled.
It gave her pause as she regarded him with alarm.
He slowly crouched. “If there is a female, she’s not here. You are.”
Ouch. Would anyone with breasts do it for him right now?
He seemed to guess where her thoughts went. It shouldn’t have surprised her. The man she’d known had been deeply insightful.
“I am certain there is no female I want more than you, Joy. If I was dating, I settled for her.”
“You can’t know that for sure.”
He leaned forward, gripped the edge of the bed with both hands, and nodded. “I have no doubt.”
― Laurann Dohner, quote from Moon


“Someday, Dante, I will discover how your mind works”
― Lilith Saintcrow, quote from The Devil's Right Hand


“When might I expect you then?"
Whenever is least convenient for you, the demon replied.”
― Diana Wynne Jones, quote from Dark Lord of Derkholm


Interesting books

The Vile Village
(102K)
The Vile Village
by Lemony Snicket
Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders
(48.5K)
Fragile Things: Shor...
by Neil Gaiman
Eight Cousins
(31.6K)
Eight Cousins
by Louisa May Alcott
Friday Night Bites
(40.6K)
Friday Night Bites
by Chloe Neill
A Hat Full of Sky
(52.1K)
A Hat Full of Sky
by Terry Pratchett
The Distance Between Us
(51K)
The Distance Between...
by Kasie West

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.