Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Quotes

Top Ten Tuesday is an awesome book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

To be honest, I don’t have a collection of favorite book quotes.  I used to always take notes on the books I read to remember favorite passages.  But lately I haven’t done this and so I don’t have much to draw on for this post.  Instead, I’ve gone back and selected a few quotes that I did jot down a few years back.  These are mostly wordings or phrases that struck me, not profound quotes.  Still, some posts had multiple quotes but, even from those, these are the ones that still reverberate with me. Also, the realization that I don’t have many quotes has inspired me to begin paying more attention as I read and perhaps return to my original reading template for more mindful reading. 1) The letter was beastly long.  The blood began pounding over his body as he unfolded it, but his head kept cool, and he managed to read it as a whole, not merely sentence by sentence. (Maurice by E.M. Forster)  I found this passage to be so realistic and perfectly summed how I’ve felt when I read a letter or email. 2) Advertising has these people chasing cars and clothes they don’t need.  Generations have been working in jobs they hate, just so they can buy what they don’t really need. (Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk)  I like this quote because it makes you think about the world and consumerist tendencies, including my own.  Do I really need objects to make me happy? 3) I felt weary, stiff, and travel-soiled.  The freshness of the morning made me desire an equal freshness. (The Time Machine by H.W. Wells)  Perfect summary of how I feel after traveling for a long time. 4) 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? (Landing by Emma Donoghue)  Yes, I do it too sometimes.  I guess it’s just human nature.
5) …when it’s time to die, go ahead and die, and when it’s time to live, live.  Don’t sort-of-maybe live, but live like you’re going all out, like you’re not afraid. (The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd)  An excellent reminder to live life to the fullest every day.
6) …nothing is impossible when we follow our inner guidance, even when its direction may threaten us by reversing our usual logic.  (Love is Letting Go of Fear by Gerald Jampolsky) So many wonderful quotes from this book.  But this one is so true and I’m glad I came across it again because I need to be reminded of it.
7) I would never make fun of anyone who loved to read. (The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Burrows) A reminder to accept people and their reading habits, even if I don’t understand them.
8) She pressed her lips against his, infusing her kiss with all the affection that welled within her. (Nocturne by Syrie James)  How I feel when I kiss my boyfriend.  Sometimes a kiss doesn’t seem like enough to convey all the love I feel for him.