“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
“If you’re going to need me, even if it’s just to yell at, I’m going to stay right here.”
“No, I want to take a shower. I’m not about to if you stay out there.”
“Excuse me, but-huh? Then there will be two doors between you and me.”
Some of the blood stayed in my cheeks as I found myself spluttering, “But you’ll know I’m taking a shower!”
“You just told me you were going to!”
― Lia Habel, quote from Dearly, Departed
“But in order to survive in this foreign world, I had to teach myself that love was very much like a painting. The negative space between people was just as important as the positive space we occupy. The air between our resting bodies, and the breath in between our conversations, were all like the white of the canvas, and the rest our relationship—the laughter and the memories—were the brushstrokes applied over time.”
― Alyson Richman, quote from The Lost Wife
“I run because if I didn’t, I’d be sluggish and glum and spend too much time on the couch. I run to breathe the fresh air. I run to explore. I run to escape the ordinary. I run…to savor the trip along the way. Life becomes a little more vibrant, a little more intense. I like that.”
― Dean Karnazes, quote from Ultramarathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner
“When people talk listen completely. Don’t be thinking what you’re going to say. Most people never listen.”
― Ernest Hemingway, quote from Across the River and into the Trees
“he is appointed Lieutenant Colonel, second-in-command of the Twentieth Maine Regiment of Volunteers.”
― Jeff Shaara, quote from The Last Full Measure
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.