Quotes about herring
page 22

“I cannot do it. I cannot bear it. I cannot go back to what I was here. I cannot stand at her side and watch another take her. I am not that strong or that good.”

Laurell K. Hamilton A Stroke of Midnight

Source: A Stroke of Midnight

Strong

“There's something about her," Caire said in a low voice. "She cares for everyone about her, yet neglects herself. I want to be the one who cares for her.”

Elizabeth Hoyt (1970) American writer

Source: Wicked Intentions

“We still should have enough time to reach Rome.”
Hazel scowled. “When you say…”
Leo shrugged. “How do you feel about?”
Hazel put her face in her hands for a count of three. “Sounds about typical for us.”

Rick Riordan The Mark of Athena

Source: The Mark of Athena

Feeling, Time

“Not enough." Margo rose and tucked the towel in place. " Come on, let's go stuff her in a locker. For old time's sake.”

Nora Roberts (1950) American romance writer

Source: Daring to Dream

Time

“For her, reading was directly linked to pleasure, not to knowledge or enigmas or constructions or verbal labyrinths…”

Roberto Bolaño book 2666

Source: 2666

Pleasure, Knowledge, Reading

“I wouldn't mind meeting a dashing thief," the woman's friend whispered. Hale winked at Kat.

Kat raised her eyebrows and whispered, "I'd like to meet one of those, too.”

Ally Carter book Heist Society

Source: Heist Society

“I once asked a young dissertation writer whether her suddenly grayed hair was due to ill health or personal tragedy; she answered: “It was the footnotes”.”

Joanna Russ book How to Suppress Women's Writing

Source: How to Suppress Women's Writing

Health, Personality

“It was a strange thing, this feeling of empathy. He'd never experienced it before. He realized that what hurt this woman hurt him as well, that what made her bleed caused a hemorrhage of pain within his soul.”

Elizabeth Hoyt (1970) American writer

Source: Wicked Intentions

Pain, Feeling, Soul, Hurt

“I don't like people who like me because I'm a Negro; neither do I like people who find in the same accident grounds for contempt. I love America more than any other country in the world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually. I think all theories are suspect, that the finest principles may have to be modified, or may even be pulverized by the demands of life, and that one must find, therefore, one's own moral center and move through the world hoping that this center will guide one aright.”

James Baldwin (1924–1987) (1924-1987) writer from the United States

Autobiographical Notes (1952)
Context: I don't like people who like me because I'm a Negro; neither do I like people who find in the same accident grounds for contempt. I love America more than any other country in the world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually. I think all theories are suspect, that the finest principles may have to be modified, or may even be pulverized by the demands of life, and that one must find, therefore, one's own moral center and move through the world hoping that this center will guide one aright. I consider that I have many responsibilities, but none greater than this: to last, as Hemingway says, and get my work done.
I want to be an honest man and a good writer.

Love, Life, People, World

“Helloooo." Miss Ohio rolled her eyes. "I'm from the Buckeye State. We are serious about our tailgating parties. I can turn anything into a grill.”

Libba Bray (1964) American teen writer

Source: Beauty Queens

“Yeah, that's exactly what I want. To help my girlfriend get her old boyfriend back." He turned away again, and I heard him mutter, "I needdrinks.”

Richelle Mead book Spirit Bound

Source: Spirit Bound

Help

“Ye need her as she needs ye…. and Inuyasha… DO NOT FORGET WHERE YE BURIED ME!”

Rumiko Takahashi (1957) manga artist

Forgetting

“But you love her.”
Will stared at him. “Of course I do,” he
said finally. “I had come to think I would
never love anyone, but I love her.”

Cassandra Clare book Clockwork Prince

Source: Clockwork Prince

Love, Thinking

“I want to kiss her without counting the seconds. I want to hold her so long that I get to know her skin. I want, I want, I want.”

David Levithan (1972) American author and editor

Source: Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist

Kiss

“I'm for the individual as opposed to the corporation. The way it is the individual is the underdog, and with all the things a corporation has going for them the individual comes out banged on her head. The artist is nothing. It's really tragic.”

Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962) American actress, model, and singer

Way

“She supposed they were imperfections, those marks, but they didn't feel that way to her; they were a history, cut into his body: the map of a life of endless war.”

Cassandra Clare book City of Glass

Source: City of Glass

Life, War, Way, Feeling

“I can almost hear Haymitch groaning as I team up with this wispy child. But I want her. Because she's a survivor, and I trust her, and why not admit it? She reminds me of Prim.”

Suzanne Collins The Hunger Games

Source: The Hunger Games

“Tell her this
And more,—
That the king of the seas
Weeps too, old, helpless man.
The bustling fates
Heap his hands with corpses
Until he stands like a child
With surplus of toys.”

Stephen Crane (1871–1900) American novelist, short story writer, poet, and journalist

Source: Complete Poems of Stephen Crane

Fate, Sea

“In a way, I was incrediibly proud of her (not that I had any intention of letting it show while I was beating the crap out of her).”

Meg Cabot (1967) Novelist

Way

“Somewhere in all the snow, she could see her broken heart, in two pieces. Each half was glowing, and beating under all that white.”

Markus Zusak book The Book Thief

Source: The Book Thief

Heart

“Discretion prevented me from saying that I thought she was a fiend from the underworld and that mountain lions couldn't force me to enter her service.”

Megan Whalen Turner The Thief

Source: The Thief

Mountain

“Travel light. She extended her arms to embrace her house, maybe the whole world.”

Junot Díaz book The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

Source: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

World, Travel, Light, Housing

“He left her. She was dissatisfied with him. He had preferred to incur her anger rather than cause her pain. He had kept all the pain for himself.”

Victor Hugo book The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Source: The Hunchback of Notre-Dame

Pain, Anger

“I went to college. Got a master’s degree. Went to Quantico for training. Been chasing down bad guys.”
She gave her grandmother a wry look. “You know, the usual girly stuff.”

Kerrelyn Sparks (1955) American writer

Source: The Vampire and the Virgin

Guy, Training

“She was the kind of person who took care of things by herself. She’d never ask anybody for advice or help. It wasn’t a matter of pride, I think. She just did what seemed natural to her.”

Haruki Murakami book Norwegian Wood

Source: Norwegian Wood

Nature, Thinking, Help, Personality

“Max, you're the last of the hybrids who still has… a soul.'… 'She doesn't have soul,' Gazzy scoffed. 'Have you ever seen her dance?”

James Patterson (1947) American author

Source: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports

Soul, Dance

“When she saw him face to face their eyes met and brushed like birds’ wings. After that everything was all right, everything was wonderful, she knew that he was beginning to fall in love with her.”

F. Scott Fitzgerald book Tender Is the Night

Source: Tender Is the Night

Love, Bird

“And her joy would become a restless thing, flapping its wings inside her, as though looking for an opening to fly away.”

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie book Americanah

Source: Americanah

Joy, Flying

“He gave her a bright fake smile; so much of life was a putting off of unhappiness for another time. Nothing was ever lost by delay. He had a dim idea that perhaps if one delayed long enough, things were taken out of one's hands altogether by death.”

Graham Greene book The Heart of the Matter

Source: The Heart of the Matter

Life, Death, Smile, Idea

“Poppy had known for years that she was going to marry him. It was one of her two great ambitions, the other being to see the world. She just hadn't gotten around to informing James yet.”

L.J. Smith (1965) American author

Source: Secret Vampire

World

“Her own thoughts and reflections were habitually her best companions.”

Jane Austen book Mansfield Park

Source: Mansfield Park

“The time was fast approaching when Earth, like all mothers, must say farewell to her children.”

Arthur C. Clarke book 2001: A Space Odyssey

Source: 2001: A Space Odyssey

Children, Time

“The book she had been reading was under her pillow, pressing its cover against her ear as if to lure her back into its printed pages.”

Cornelia Funke Inkheart trilogy

Source: Inkheart

Books, Reading

“And the worst thing she had heard were the words he hadn't said, the fact that he hadn't loved her.”

Danielle Steel book The Wedding

Source: The Wedding

Love

“Any woman whose I. Q. hovers above her body temperature must be a feminist.”

Rita Mae Brown (1944) Novelist, poet, screenwriter, activist

“She died chasing greatness and never saw it each time it was in her hand, so she kept seeking it elsewhere, but never understood the work required to get it or to keep it.”

Abraham Verghese book Cutting for Stone

Source: Cutting for Stone

Time

“I swear, Oliver, when did you become such a stick-in-the-mud?”
“I’ve always been a stick-in-the-mud.” Her brother cast her a thin smile. “I just hid it beneath all the debauchery.”
She sniffed. “I wish you’d hide it again. It’s quite annoying.”

Sabrina Jeffries (1960) American writer

Source: How to Woo a Reluctant Lady

Smile

“For an instant she felt his touch on her cheek then he stepped back. There that was my ration for all eternity. People have died for less I dare say.”

Eva Ibbotson book A Countess Below Stairs

Source: A Countess Below Stairs

People

“Who wants us?" Bianca demanded. "Because if you think you'll get a ransom, you're wrong. We don't have any family. Nico and I—" Her voice broke a little. "We've got no one but each other.”

Rick Riordan book The Titan's Curse

Source: The Titan's Curse

Family, Thinking

“She asks why I like her.
Might as well ask
Why I breathe.
Maybe tomorrow I won't
Breathe or like her
Anymore.
Maybe tomorrow the tides
Will stop.
Maybe tomorrow will bring
No more rainbows.
Maybe tomorrow
She will stop
Asking useless questions.”

Gail Carson Levine book The Wish

Source: The Wish

Question

“Marrying a woman for her beauty makes no more sense than eating a bird for its singing. But it's a common mistake nonetheless.”

Charles Frazier book Cold Mountain

Source: Cold Mountain

Beauty, Bird, Sense, Singing

“Esther, however, was the only woman who understood one very simple thing: in order to be able to find her, I first had to find myself.”

Paulo Coelho book The Zahir

Source: The Zahir

“Really? And what curse befalls the Adams of the world?"
Ann opens her mouth and, presumably thinking of nothing to say, closes it again.
It is Felicity who answers, eyes steely. "They are weak to temptation. And we are their temptresses.”

Libba Bray book Rebel Angels

Source: Rebel Angels

World, Thinking

“She rested her head against his and felt, for the first time, what she would often feel with him: a self-affection. He made her like herself.”

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie book Americanah

Source: Americanah

Feeling, Time

“This is the woman's century, the first chance for the mother of the world to rise to her full place… and the world waits while she powders her nose.”

Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860–1935) American feminist, writer, commercial artist, lecturer and social reformer

World, Chance, Waiting

“She was alive, and they were dead. She had to try to make her life big. As big as she could. She promised Bailey she would keep playing.”

Ann Brashares The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Source: The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Life, Dead

“Even if I thought he as perfect for her." She turned to face him. "What were we thinking?"

"We weren't," he said. "We were in love.”

Nicholas Sparks book The Best of Me

Source: The Best of Me

Love, Thinking, Perfection

“She was glad she didn’t know where it would take her. Because sometimes the only thing that
got you through hell was that you were in too deep to pull out.

[Ehlena]”

Jessica Bird (1969) U.S. novelist

Source: Lover Avenged

Hell

“She could smell the pages. She could almost taste the words as they stacked up around her.”

Markus Zusak book The Book Thief

Source: The Book Thief

“You can woo a girl with a poem, but you can't hold onto her with a poem. Not even with a poetry movement.”

Roberto Bolaño book The Savage Detectives

Source: The Savage Detectives

Girl

“The stairs aren't challenging enough anymore?" he asked.

Antonio laughed. "Challenge has nothing to do with it, Jer. I'd say it's the big bad wolf huffing and puffing at her door up there.”

Kelley Armstrong book Bitten

Source: Bitten

Wolf

“Her body moved with the frankness that comes from solitary habits. But solitude is only a human presumption. Every quiet step is thunder to beetle life underfoot; every choice is a world made new for the chosen. All secrets are witnessed.”

Barbara Kingsolver book Prodigal Summer

Source: Prodigal Summer (2000).

Life, Secret, World, Solitude

“When she came to write her story, she would wonder when the books and the words started to mean not just something, but everything.”

Markus Zusak book The Book Thief

Source: The Book Thief

Books

“I’m Angelina,” she says. “Are you here to save us?” I can see a tiny spark of hope awaken in her eyes.
“You’re right, Angelina - I’m here to save you.”
“Can you? Really?”
“I’ll try,” I say and the girl smiles.”

Markus Zusak (1975) Australian author

Source: I Am the Messenger

Smile, Hope, Girl

“His lips pressed against her forehead and she felt him smile against her skin. "Believe me… the only place in the world I want to be is wherever you are."

-Grant Morgan”

Lisa Kleypas (1964) American writer

Source: Someone to Watch Over Me

World, Smile

“The old women only stuck around this long out of a sense of duty. Your mom was the same way. That's why I loved her. She put her duty first, ahead of evverything.”

Rick Riordan book The Son of Neptune

Source: The Son of Neptune

Love, Women, Way, Moms

“but curiosity is a restless and scrupulous passion, and no one girl can endure, with patience, that hers should be baffled by another.”

J. Sheridan Le Fanu book Carmilla

Source: Carmilla

Girl, Passion, Patience

“After our mom died, her parents (our grandparents) had this big court battle with dad. After six lawyers, two fistfights, and a near fatal attack with a spatula (don't ask), they won the right to keep Sadie with them in England.”

Rick Riordan book The Red Pyramid

Source: The Red Pyramid

Moms, Parent

“Who are you?" because even now, she couldn't let her questions go. "What are you?"
That face that wasn't a face smiled. It was the most terrible thing she'd ever see, ever. "Magnus" he said. "I'm the end.”

Rachel Caine (1962) American writer

Source: Last Breath

Smile, Question

“She wasn't in love but she would love him, if that would save her.”

Joyce Carol Oates Black Water

Source: Black Water

Love

“… and her dreams that didn't happen, that couldn't have happened because she'd pinned them on somebody too broken and unattainable to love her back.”

Janette Rallison (1966) American writer

Source: My Double Life

Love, Dreams

“Through the ingenuousness of her age beamed an ardent mind, a mind not of the women but of the poet; she did not please, she intoxicated.”

Alexandre Dumas (1802–1870) French writer and dramatist, father of the homonym writer and dramatist

Women, Age

“I always search for her; I always remember her. I carry the hope that someday she will remember me.”

Ann Brashares book My Name is Memory

Source: My Name Is Memory

Hope, Search

“She decided to free herself, dance into the wind, create a new language. And birds fluttered around her, writing “yes” in the sky.”

Monique Duval (1924–2014) Canadian journalist

Bird, Dance

“Bridget's anger evaporated and the sadness came back. The anger was easier. She owned and controlled it, whereas the sadness owned her.”

Ann Brashares book Sisterhood Everlasting

Source: Sisterhood Everlasting

Sadness, Anger

“She wanted nothing that he could offer her, except perhaps his absence.”

Clive Barker book The Hellbound Heart

Source: The Hellbound Heart

“The Suicide, as she is falling,
Illuminated by the moon,
Regrets her act, and finds appalling
The thought she will be dead so soon.”

Edward Gorey (1925–2000) American writer, artist, and illustrator

Suicide, Dead

“You have a steady fella?” Sam asked after a bit.

“No fella can hold me for long.”

Sam gave her a sideways glance. “That a challenge?”

“No. A statement of fact.”

Libba Bray book The Diviners

Source: The Diviners

“Almost-Sister, you picked a real catch.”
“It was I who caught her,” Adam said softly. “It took years.”

Patricia Briggs book Night Broken

Source: Night Broken

Sister

“Henry," said Charlotte, who appeared to have recovered from her shock, "if you set yourself on fire deliberately, I will institute divorce proceedings. Now sit down and eat your supper. And say hello to our guest.”

Cassandra Clare book Clockwork Angel

Variant: Henry," said Charlotte, who seemed to have recovered from her shock, "if you set yourself on fire deliberately, I will institute divorce proceedings. Now sit down and eat your supper. And say hello to our guest.
Source: Clockwork Angel

Appearance

“Tall, aren't you?" she said.
"I didn't mean to be."
Her eyes rounded. She was puzzled. She was thinking. I could see, even on that short acquaintance, that thinking was always going to be a bother to her.”

Raymond Chandler book The Big Sleep

Source: The Big Sleep

Thinking

“Phaedra looked across the water and her eyes met Lucian’s. Their needs came second. It came from the privilege of being trusted.”

Melina Marchetta (1965) Australian teen writer

Source: Quintana of Charyn

Water

“She tortured everybody around her, but only because she was more tortured than anyone.”

Lev Grossman The Magicians

Source: The Magicians

“To me, poetry is somebody standing up, so to speak, and saying, with as little concealment as possible, what it is for him or her to be on earth at this moment”

Galway Kinnell (1927–2014) Poet

“She was disappearing a little more each day, so thin, so frail, a wisp of smoke. One day she would surely vanish altogether, and there was no way to stop her.”

Alice Hoffman (1952) Novelist, young-adult writer, children's writer

Source: Green Heart

Way

“When a woman has not received much flattery in her life, she will be seduced.”

Melina Marchetta (1965) Australian teen writer

Source: Froi of the Exiles

Life

“I didn’t care about anything except her and the way touching her drove me wild, even as her calm and steady presence soothed the storms that raged within me.”

Richelle Mead book The Fiery Heart

Source: The Fiery Heart

Way, Rage

“Kev wasn't certain if he was surrendering to Win or to his own passion for her. Only that there was no more holding back. He would take her. And he would give her everything he had, every part of his soul, even the broken pieces.”

Lisa Kleypas (1964) American writer

Source: Seduce Me at Sunrise

Soul, Passion, Parting

“The light of love, the purity of grace,
The mind, the music breathing from her face, 19
The heart whose softness harmonized the whole,—
And oh, that eye was in itself a soul!”

George Gordon Byron book The Bride of Abydos

Canto I, Stanza 6; this can be compared to: "The bloom of young Desire and purple light of Love", Thomas Gray, The Progress of Poesy I. 3, line 16; also: "Oh, could you view the melody / Of every grace / And music of her face", Richard Lovelace, Orpheus to Beasts; "There is music in the beauty, and the silent note which Cupid strikes, far sweeter than the sound of an instrument", Thomas Browne, Religio Medici, Part ii, Section ix.
The Bride of Abydos (1813)

Love, Music, Soul, Light