“Perhaps if the future existed, concretely and individually, as something that could be discerned by a better brain, the past would not be so seductive: its demands would be balanced by those of the future.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“This is, I believe, it: not the crude anguish of physical death but the incomparable pangs of the mysterious mental maneuver needed to pass from one state of being to another.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“Easy, you know, does it, son.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“ 'I shall vomit,' said Hugh, 'if you persist in pestering me with all that odious rot.' ”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“Mas o amor, dizia ele, era tudo menos credível, a vida real era ridícula, os labregos riam-se do amor.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“According to my almond-eyed little spy, the great surgeon, may his own liver rot, lied to me when he declared yesterday with a deathhead's grin that the operazione had been perfetta. Well, it had been so in the sense Euler called zero the perfect number. Actually, they ripped me open, cast one horrified look at my decayed fegato, and without touching it sewed me up again.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“Direct interference in a person's life does not enter our scope of activity, nor, on the other, tralatitiously speaking, hand, is his destiny a chain of predeterminate links: some "future" events may be likelier than others, O.K., but all are chimeric, and every cause-and-effect sequence is always a hit-and-miss affair, even if the lunette has actually closed around your neck, and the cretinous crowd holds its breath.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“He loved her in spite of her unlovableness. Armande had many trying, though not necessarily rare, traits, all of which he accepted as absurd clues in a clever puzzle.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“and he, Hugh Person....began to undress her in the motels of his mind”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
“Eis a pessoa que eu quero. Olá, pessoa! Não me ouve.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, quote from Transparent Things
Vladimir Nabokov
Born place: in Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation
Born date April 22, 1899
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“Dann kam Achill das Vieh. Des Mörders Eintritt in den Tempel, der, als er im Eingang stand, verdunkelt wurde. Was wollte dieser Mensch. Was suchte er bewaffnet hier im Tempel. Grässlichster Augenblick: Ich wusst es schon. Dann lachte er. Jedes Haar auf meinem Kopf stand mir zu Berge, und in die Augen meines Bruders trat der reine Schrecken. Ich warf mich über ihn und wurde weggeschoben wie ein Ding aus Nichts [...] Lachend, alles lachend. Ihm an den Hals griff. An die Kehle ging [...] Des Bruders Augen aus den Höhlen quellend. Und in Achills Gesicht die Lust. Die nackte grässliche männliche Lust [...] Nun hob der Feind, das Monstrum, im Anblick der Apollon-Statue sein Schwert und trennte meines Bruders Kopf vom Rumpf.”
― Christa Wolf, quote from Cassandra: A Novel and Four Essays
“Old and cherished ideas die hard.”
― Graham E. Fuller, quote from A World Without Islam
“It was like wanting ice cream instead of meat loaf, and being told that children in refugee camps would be grateful for the meat loaf. Yes, of course she had nothing to complain about, compared to so many people, but when had that ever stopped anyone from complaining? Happiness was a balloon that always hovered just out of arm's reach.”
― Emma Donoghue, quote from Landing
“You can have all the wine and dragons that my money can buy. That’s what the old woman told me, and I listened.”
― L'Poni Baldwin, quote from Dragons and Cicadas: The Society On Da Run
“Ha detto: “Tre cose che non devi fare nella vita, Enait jan, per nessun motivo. La prima è usare le droghe. Ce ne sono che hanno un odore e un sapore buono e i sussurrano alle orecchie che sapranno farti stare meglio di come potrai mai stare senza di loro. Ma tu non devi credergli. Lo prometti?”
“Promesso”
“La seconda è usare le armi. Anche se qualcuno ti tratterà male, o ti insulterà, promettimi che la tua mano non si stringerà mai attorno a un coltello, a una pietra e neppure intorno a un mestolo di legno per il qhorma palaw, se qul mestolo di legno serve a ferire un uomo. Lo prometti?”
“Promesso”
“La terza è rubare. Ciò che è tuo ti appartiene, ciò che non è tuo no. I soldi che ti servono li guadagnerai lavorando, anche se il lavoro sarà faticoso. E non trufferai mai nessuno. Enait jan, vero? Sarai ospitale e tollerante con tutti. Promettimi che lo farai”
“Promesso”
Poi ha alzato lo sguardo in direzione della finestra, e ha cominciato a parlare di sogni senza smettere di solleticarmi il collo. Di sogni come la luna, alla cui luce è possibile mangiare, la sera. E di desideri, che un desiderio bisogna sempre averlo davanti agli occhi, come un asino una carota. Che se un desiderio, qualunque sia, lo si tiene in alto, a una spanna dalla fronte, allora di vivere varrà sempre la pena.
Quando mi sono addormentato, lei stava ancora parlando.
La mattina dopo è partita.”
― Fabio Geda, quote from In the Sea There are Crocodiles: Based on the True Story of Enaiatollah Akbari
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The Trick is to Keep...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.
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