“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
“Despite a few exceptions, I have found that Americans are now far more willing to learn new names, just as they're far more willing to try new ethnic foods... It's like adding a few new spices to the kitchen pantry.”
― Firoozeh Dumas, quote from Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America
“—Sí, mas lo importante no es la edad sino el talento —contestó Jonah—. Existe el talento común, y aparte, existe el talento. Para tenerlo, debes nacer con él, y además, necesitas practicar en serio. No solo cuatro horas al día sino ocho. Todos los días.”
― Morgan Rice, quote from Turned
“Why, Kat.” Deep put a hand over his heart. “I didn’t know you cared.” Kat refused to rise to the bait. “You know I do,” she said quietly. “And just because you don’t, doesn’t mean I can turn it off just like that.” She snapped her fingers to illustrate her point. For a moment, Deep looked stricken. “Kat,” he said, stopping in his tracks. “Kat, I…” “What?” Kat stopped beside him and looked up at him, her heart pounding. Was he going to admit that he cared after all? From the corner of her eye she could see Lock’s face filled with hope. But Deep just shook his head. “I’m sorry,” he said in a low voice. “Sorry it has to be like this. But it does.” “All right.” Kat nodded stoically and began walking again. Let him do what he wanted—she wasn’t going to beg. And she wasn’t going to remain bonded to a man who didn’t want and love her—not even halfway bonded. It’s for the best, she told herself as they trudged closer to the monstrous gray building that Deep had called the Complex. We all need to be free of each other—it’s the only way. But her heart was sore and she found she couldn’t look at Deep as they walked. Not if she wanted to keep from crying.”
― Evangeline Anderson, quote from Sought
“If a dog barks at the sun, it does not dim the sun's brightness. (44)”
― Padma Venkatraman, quote from Climbing the Stairs
“A fire cannot be extinguished with another fire. It is only water that can make a difference.”
― Sudha Murty, quote from The Day I Stopped Drinking Milk
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.