25 Famous Book Quotes From Our Library
Taking a quick break from our series of reviews on everything I’ve read since the start of the year (which is now nearing 60 books!), I started cataloguing our personal library and realised two things.
Firstly, I have over 150 books in my physical TBR (to-be-read) list. I know what you’re thinking, and I agree… That’s not nearly enough books on the TBR list and I should immediately go and buy at least 10 more. I hear you, don’t worry!
But more importantly, I’ve realised how many amazing books I’ve read over the last 30-something years, which have had a profound impact on the way I see and experience the world.
Therefore, I had this idea to share with the world - the world consisting of our regular 15 readers, plus anyone who might accidentally stumble on this blog post - 25 famous book quotes from our personal library that have had a massive impact on both Stani and myself.
So without further ado, enjoy!
Well, some “ado”, sorry - in order to avoid dumpster diving behind the bakery next door for the 6th day in a row, I’ve added some affiliate links to this article, and if you buy somethng, there’s a chance we’ll finally be able to afford food without big warning labels on it. So go crazy on that “add to cart” button, alright?
25 Famous Book Quotes That Have Changed The Way We See The World
“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
“Anyone who claimed that old age had brought them patience was either lying or senile”
“Now, don’t be angry after you’ve been afraid. That’s the worst kind of cowardice.”
“Multiple exclamation marks,’ he went on, shaking his head, ‘are a sure sign of a diseased mind.”
“Heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the blinding dust of earth, overlying our hard hearts. I was better after I had cried, than before—more sorry, more aware of my own ingratitude, more gentle.”
“I try all things, I achieve what I can.”
“There are many Beths in the world, shy and quiet, sitting in corners till needed, and living for others so cheerfully that no one sees the sacrifices till the little cricket on the hearth stops chirping, and the sweet, sunshiny presence vanishes, leaving silence and shadow behind.”
“Belief isn’t simply a thing for fair times and bright days...What is belief - what is faith - if you don’t continue in it after failure?...Anyone can believe in someone, or something that always succeeds...But failure...ah, now, that is hard to believe in, certainly and truly. Difficult enough to have value. Sometimes we just have to wait long enough...then we find out why exactly it was that we kept believing...There’s always another secret.”
“All grown-ups were once children... but only few of them remember it.”
“Did it never strike your mind that what every woman says, some women may feel?”
“Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.”
“.. a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge.”
“You may be born into a family, but you walk into friendships. Some you’ll discover you should put behind you. Others are worth every risk.”
“When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
“Here today, up and off to somewhere else tomorrow! Travel, change, interest, excitement! The whole world before you, and a horizon that’s always changing!”
“Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to pull the plough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. Yet he is lord of all the animals. He sets them to work, he gives back to them the bare minimum that will prevent them from starving, and the rest he keeps for himself.”
“Evil is Evil. Lesser, greater, middling… Makes no difference. The degree is arbitary. The definition’s blurred. If I’m to choose between one evil and another… I’d rather not choose at all.”
“The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.”
What do you think of our list of 25 famous book quotes that have changed the way we see the world? Should I do a part 2? Fine, fine, stop shouting all at once - I’ll do a part 2, jeez…
Before you go, make sure to check out some of our recent reviews below!
Enjoy these 25 book quotes taken from famous works of fiction, which have had a profound impact on us as readers!