Quotes from The Storyteller

Mario Vargas Llosa ·  256 pages

Rating: (3.2K votes)


“But what do I have? The things I'm told and the things I tell, that's all. And as far as I know, that never yet made anyone fly.”
― Mario Vargas Llosa, quote from The Storyteller


“The sort of decision arrived at by saints and madmen is not revealed to others. It is forged little by little, in the folds of the spirit, tangential to reason, shielded from indiscreet eyes, not seeking the approval of others—who would never grant it—until it is at last put into practice. I imagine that in the process—the conceiving of a project and its ripening into action—the saint, the visionary, or the madman isolates himself more and more, walling himself up in solitude, safe from the intrusion of others.”
― Mario Vargas Llosa, quote from The Storyteller


“It was a question I asked myself each time one of these studies or field observations came to my attention, and I saw, once again, that no mention was made, even in passing, of those wandering tellers of tales, who seemed to me to be the most exquisite and precious exemplars of that people, numbering a mere handful, and who, in any event, had forged that curious emotional link between the Machiguengas and my own vocation (not to say, quite simply, my own life).”
― Mario Vargas Llosa, quote from The Storyteller


“Sebab "budaya" tidaklah sinonim dengan sains, sastra, atau bidang spesialisasi lainnya, namun sebuah cara memandang hal ihwal, sebuah pendekatan yang mampu menangkap apapun yang berkaitan dengan manusia.”
― Mario Vargas Llosa, quote from The Storyteller


“Kalau sesuatu bermakna begitu besar buatmu, kau menyelubunginya dengan misteri," tercetus padaku untuk berkata.”
― Mario Vargas Llosa, quote from The Storyteller



“Dan camkan ini, pada hari di mana kalian berhenti berjalan, kalian akan lenyap seutuhnya.”
― Mario Vargas Llosa, quote from The Storyteller


About the author

Mario Vargas Llosa
Born place: in Arequipa, Peru
Born date March 28, 1936
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“He was an old Drag man with his bit getting short. He was the first to attempt to teach me to control my emotions. He would say, “Always remember whether you be sucker or hustler in the world out there, you’ve got that vital edge if you can iron-clad your feelings. I picture the human mind as a movie screen. If you’re a dopey sucker, you’ll just sit and watch all kinds of mindwrecking, damn fool movies on that screen.” He said. “Son, there is no reason except a stupid one for anybody to project on that screen anything that will worry him or dull that vital edge. After all, we are the absolute bosses of that whole theatre and show in our minds. We even write the script. So always write positive, dynamic scripts and show only the best movies for you on that screen whether you are pimp or priest.” His rundown of his screen theory saved my sanity many years later. He was a twisted wise man and one day when he wasn’t looking, a movie flashed on the screen. The title was “Death For an Old Con.”
― Iceberg Slim, quote from Pimp: The Story of My Life


“king and the beggar had the same chance at miracles and great temptations and revelations. And that’s what makes men happy, believing in the mystery and importance of their own little individual lives. It makes us happy to surround our creature needs and bodily instincts with as much pomp and circumstance as possible. Art and religion (they are the same thing, in the end, of course) have given man the only happiness he has ever had.”
― Willa Cather, quote from The Professor's House


“Lord can restore a covenant with Israel and yet continue”
― Jack Miles, quote from God: A Biography


“Look at yourself. Hatred and anger, kindness and bravery. They are all yours, and rightly so. Accept this, face it straight on, then ask yourself what it means to change your destiny.”
― Miyuki Miyabe, quote from Brave Story


“But you have to live in the present. You have to take the old and make it new -- that's my point.”
― Lauren Myracle, quote from Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks


Interesting books

Wintersmith
(42.6K)
Wintersmith
by Terry Pratchett
Invitation to a Beheading
(10.8K)
Invitation to a Behe...
by Vladimir Nabokov
Antony and Cleopatra
(25.6K)
Antony and Cleopatra
by William Shakespeare
The Foxhole Court
(14.9K)
The Foxhole Court
by Nora Sakavic
This Boy's Life
(22.2K)
This Boy's Life
by Tobias Wolff
Almost Heaven
(22.3K)
Almost Heaven
by Judith McNaught

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.