Sujata Massey > Quotes

“Remember this! It is never an entire people who is cruel; it is merely individuals who exert their will on others.”
― Sujata Massey, The Sleeping Dictionary

“Crockery broke and fabric frayed. The delicate things I cared about perished, while the hard things like swords survived.”
― Sujata Massey, The Samurai's Daughter

“We worship differently, but we are not so far apart in our hearts,”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“She had been meant to die, yet she’d cut her way out of that fate and back to the world she loved.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“The boundaries communities drew around themselves seemed to narrow their lives—whether it was women and men, Hindus and Muslims, or Parsis and everyone else.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“She turned her attention from Maharani Putlabai to Mirabai. Why was the younger queen on a chair and not a cushion? Perhaps it was a statement of her middling position—that she was not high enough for the zenana throne, but she was respected enough not to be somewhat elevated.”
― Sujata Massey, The Satapur Moonstone

“off. Next I moved on to scrutinize the aged plaster walls near the desk. Beside a museum calendar featuring old woodblock prints was a taped-up paper that looked like a printed reproduction of an”
― Sujata Massey, The Kizuna Coast

“She’d started out the morning hating all young men. Then she’d become so angry with her law professor that she’d quit school. Finally, she’d gone to eat rice with a man she didn’t know.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“Is this idea of yours to help the Cuttingmasters, or is it really to advance your career?” With a knowing smile, she said, “Is there any reason I can’t do both? That is what you have been doing all your life. Ambition is not a dirty word for men.”
― Sujata Massey, The Bombay Prince

“No. I am retired from the post office for the last ten years. Most afternoons, it is my daily routine to arrive at three and leave at six.” “Your routine seems very pleasant.” Perveen imagined what her life might be like when she was alone and in her seventies.”
― Sujata Massey, The Bombay Prince

“But before the friends settled on a wrought-iron bench with distance from others, they stopped to buy their kulfi. Alice took pistachio, and Perveen had plain cardamom. There was a brief squabble about paying the vendor, which Perveen won. The cold, sweet ice cream was a most comforting taste after all the tension of the day.”
― Sujata Massey, The Bombay Prince

“There was a rhythm to the process. First, a pot of equal parts water and milk was put on the hob. To this, Camellia added a few spoons of Assamese tea, two slices of ginger, and a fistful of fresh lemongrass leaves and mint. After arriving at a gentle boil, a tablespoon of sugar went in, and the brew cooked for five minutes.”
― Sujata Massey, The Bombay Prince

“It was an odd habit, I thought, this insistence on driving a car in cities with public transportation.”
― Sujata Massey, The Pearl Diver: A Witty and Suspenseful Mystery of Two Linked Disappearances in Washington DC

“The ordinary woman had perhaps been so busy that the veiled newspaper warnings of famine had not penetrated to her; but perhaps that was natural when the authorities kept repeating, “There is plenty of rice. Plenty of rice.” Perhaps there was plenty of rice, but in that case, who, women were beginning to ask, who were these people flocking into the towns and the city? Men and women and unclothed children, all with scarecrow legs and arms and ribs, and strange sunk eyes and swollen stomachs? Why did they settle in swarms on the pavements, round the rubbish bins, sleeping there through the nights, covering the streets with filth and cess? Why did no one come to move away? Why, rather did more and more come every day?”
― Sujata Massey, The Sleeping Dictionary

“She was taking her own liberties with him. Was this liberation?”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“Parsis say to always give the first bite of food to the dog!”
― Sujata Massey, The Satapur Moonstone

“I didn't have a cell phone, and as a result I hadn't thought much about what one would do with them, other than irritate people around me.”
― Sujata Massey, The Samurai's Daughter

“After leaving Calcutta, she had pledged to herself not to disrespect her father. He’d taken her back without question, paid for her to study in England, and hired her as his employee when no other law firm in Bombay would.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“She had the gift of seeing people for who they are, I think.”
― Sujata Massey, The Bombay Prince

“I don't think much of such plants as medicine." Dr. Andrews's face was disapproving. "Every plant grows differently. One cannot control for strength of dosage.”
― Sujata Massey, The Satapur Moonstone

“I think I can explain her feeling,” Sakina said, patting Razia’s hand. “If it’s publicly known that Amina has wandered the city, her reputation will be ruined. We will never find a groom for her.We are praying for Allah’s blessing on her travels to Oudh. After that, we would humbly request your assistance in returning her to Bombay.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“the Indian-born Zoroastrians. Although Parsis accounted for just 6 percent of Bombay’s total inhabitants, they constituted one-third of its lawyers.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“Perveen was dismayed. "Is it necessary to burn buildings to control epidemics?”
― Sujata Massey, The Satapur Moonstone

“Secluded communities of women are a concern. Some unfair and possibly illegal things happen that the government never knows about, because the women don’t come out to tell what’s going on.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“Enough! I’ve known Alice for almost four years, and I would never use her for gain. Our friendship stands apart from family politics, business, and everything else.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“mats perfectly picks up the color of the chairs?” “Honey, it’s my restaurant. I’m the one who”
― Sujata Massey, The Pearl Diver: A Witty and Suspenseful Mystery of Two Linked Disappearances in Washington DC

“Her father had thought it too much to throw in the faces of clients who needed a gentle introduction to the prospect of female representation.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“They ignored the fact that marriage is the most serious contract that can be undertaken. Such a union should not come about without investigation. My wife and I expected we would be well acquainted with a groom and his family.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“Zoroastrians had ruled Persia before the Arab conquest in the middle of the seventh century, and a shared aesthetic came through in the ornate floral tiles.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill

“You bastard! You have brought up the sorrow my family has tried so hard to put behind us!” Cyrus shouted angrily, ignoring the constables hastening toward him.”
― Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill