Tom McCarthy (writer): Everything

Tom McCarthy (writer) is British writer. Explore interesting quotes on everything.

Tom McCarthy (writer): 16 quotes 0 likes

“In the part of the night where it's quietest, around three or four o'clock, I started wondering where this black man's soul had disappeared to as it left his body. His thoughts, impressions, memories, whatever: the background noise we all have in our head that stops us from forgetting we're alive. It had to go somewhere: it couldn't just vaporize—it must have gushed, trickled or dripped onto some surface, stained it somehow. Everything must leave some kind of mark.”

Tom McCarthy (writer) book Déjà vu

Source: Remainder (2005), Ch. 11.

Soul , Memory , Parting , Night

“Surplus matter. I'd forgotten all about that phrase, those classes—even before the accident, I mean. After the accident I forgot everything. It was as though my memories were pigeons and the accident a big noise that had scared them off. They fluttered back eventually—but when they did, their hierarchy had changed, and some that had had crappy places before ended up with better ones: I remembered them more clearly; they seemed more important.”

Tom McCarthy (writer) book Déjà vu

Source: Remainder (2005), Ch. 6.

Memory , Change

“Poor Naz. He wanted everything to be perfect, neat, wanted all matter organized and filed away so that it wasn't mess. He had to learn too: matter's what makes us alive—the bitty flow, the scar tissue, signature of the world's very first disaster and promissory note guaranteeing its last. Try to iron it out at your peril.”

Tom McCarthy (writer) book Déjà vu

Source: Remainder (2005), Ch. 16.

World , Learning , Perfection