Isa > Isa's Quotes

“It's hard being left behind. (...) It's hard to be the one who stays.”
― Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler's Wife

“I wanted someone to love who would stay: stay and be there, always.”
― Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler's Wife

“I go to sleep alone, and wake up alone. I take walks. I work until I'm tired. I watch the wind play with the trash that's been under the snow all winter. Everything seems simple until you think about it. Why is love intensified by abscence?”
― Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler's Wife

“Um,” Arthur says. He’s looking at me dead-on, like he’s forcing himself to do it. God, I wish he would knock it off. I also wish he’d lose his eyelashes in a freak eyelash fire incident. And his lips, too, because all of a sudden I’m looking at them, what is that. “Yes. I thought we should discuss—”

“You mouth-mauling me?” I ask loudly, indignantly, like a tough sonuvabitch who doesn’t want to be mouth-mauled. I make myself meet his eyes. They’re green; I never paid attention before. This really light, interesting, intelligent green—

FUCK, this guy needs to STOP HAVING A FACE.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“You know, I don’t think it’s worth it to deny yourself happiness just so you can stay faithful to the person you think you’ve become.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“Now, okay, important knitting life lesson right here: don’t go acrylic. Just don’t. Acrylic’s what you’re gonna find at, like, Wal-Mart, and acrylic is crap. I have it on good authority that it’s like knitting with barbed wire, that it’s squeaky, yeah, that’s right, squeaky, and that – although I can’t vouch for this one personally – apparently it’s what Satan uses to make Christmas sweaters for the ninth-circle sinners.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“Arthur reaches over to take them. As he does, his thumb brushes my thumb, and it’s so cold, this sudden shock of cold. The flowers get dropped. They make a slight, swishy sound as they hit the floor.

“Shit,” I say, my voice sounding really loud in my ears.

And then he kisses me.

It’s—

I don’t know.

I don’t know, I don’t know.

It’s my brain turning off, it’s nothing. It’s a feeling. It’s a mouth on mine, and fuck it. Fuck my whole goddamn life, man. Just fuck it. I don’t move away like I should, but neither does he. He puts one of his hands on my face.

Then the bells on the front door ring. We break apart and I open my eyes.

And there’s Arthur looking back at me.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“I’ve got this perception of Beethoven where he’s just, like, really pissed all the time. Yeah, ol’ Ludwig, he had a lot to pound on the piano bitterly about. I’m Germannnn! I’m deaffff! I’m bliiiind! My name is Ludwigggg!

Was he blind? I’m pretty sure.

Or, wait, maybe that was Helen Keller.

Was he even German?

Was she German?

Is Ludwig a name?

I’m starting to worry I’m just making shit up.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“Well,” he says; a smile curves his mouth, promising wonderful acts of misbehavior, “in that case—”

And, well.

I like my body when it’s with his body.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“I set off on a mighty search for my pants, which I eventually discover underneath the futon. Sorry, pants. You serve me well, by and large, but when you gotta go, you gotta go.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“I surreptitiously attempt to practice his I’m Here And I’m Listening And I’m The Best Damn Boyfriend Ever expression on my own face. He does it so well. But it must be possible, right? It’s not like he’s that crazy-talented.

He’s about to start talking, but then he stops and stares at me.

“What?” I say, trying not to let my face muscles shift too much. This is damn tricky.

“You look like you’re about to start playing the world’s saddest song on its tiniest little violin,” Arthur informs me. “And then hug a kitten, and paint a rainbow, and watch Titanic whilst weeping profusely.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“What are we calling that, exactly?” I ask.

Arthur ponders this for a moment. “Hmm. How about … Haphazard Medley Inspired By Radio on the Drive Over, Messrs. McCartney, Lennon, Harrison, and Starr, The Most Hideous Preteen Holiday Monstrosity Ever Inflicted Upon The Ears Of Longsuffering Parents, The Smiths Because I Know You Like Them, And A Great Deal Of Nonsense Made Up Spur Of The Moment, All For The Beautiful Boy Who Is Sitting Next To Me, Because Somehow, Amidst The Recent Chaos, Dissatisfaction, And Mediocrity Of My Existence, Lord Knows How, I Seem To Have Done Something Very Right.”

Oh, this guy.

“You’re never going to fit that on any album sleeves,” I say, leaning in to rest my forehead against his.

“Just the beautiful boy part, then,” he compromises, starting to smile.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“He doesn’t quite kiss me, even though he’s close enough to. I look at him, loving the quiet and the quirk of his mouth when he smiles, thinking I could stick around this guy for always and be happy, thinking I could count his eyelashes and not get bored.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“I feel stupidly flustered right now. “Okay, well, he’s still just like – and then there’s his friggin’ eyelashes—”

“You noticed his eyelashes?” Amber asks, like it’s weird to do.

It is, I realize with a horrible sinking feeling. It’s weird to notice somebody’s eyelashes.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“Hey, Arthur?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you for turning into a lunatic that one time, chasing a bunch of shoplifting teenagers through a rainstorm, and coming back to kiss me in the fake flower aisle at random. In retrospect, I really appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome,” he says fondly.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“Shhh,” she orders, reaching across the table and pressing her finger against my lips. “This is Mommy’s Lifetime monologue.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“You’re not allowed to freeze your ears off. All of the other mothers will make fun of me for having the bizarre earless offspring, and I don’t know if I’m secure enough to endure that.”

“In that case, I should probably let my ears freeze off for the greater good. It sounds like you are in need of some serious character growth, Mamacita.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“Kristy smiles at both of us, the kind of smile that makes Julie Andrews look like a jaded crack whore.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“That chapstick that you’re wearing,” Arthur says after a few seconds, his smile broadening, “is that pink banana?”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“Or, well, okay, the way Cora phrased it was, “You’re just like, oh my God, die, you fucking cocksucker scarf, screw this fucking knitting nonsense,” but.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“He gives me a slight smile. I simultaneously want to, like, build shrines to it and punch it off his face. It’s complicated.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“I could probably be into goats, sexy style, and [my mom] still wouldn’t use it against me. She’d want me to achieve whatever goat-wooing dreams I set my mind to. Bring Mrs. Goat home for the holidays.”
― Hannah Johnson, Know Not Why

“Walking the stacks in a library, dragging your fingers across the spines -- it's hard not to feel the presence of sleeping spirits.”
― Robin Sloan, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

“But I kept at it with the help-wanted ads. My standards were sliding swiftly. At first I had insisted I would only work at a company with a mission I believed in. Then I thought maybe it would be fine as long as I was learning something new. After that I decided it just couldn't be evil. Now I was carefully delineating my personal definition of evil.”
― Robin Sloan, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

“You know, I'm really starting to think the whole world is just a patchwork quilt of crazy little cults, all with their own secret spaces, their own records, their own rules.”
― Robin Sloan, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

“Neel takes a sharp breath and I know exactly what it means. It means: I have waited my whole life to walk through a secret passage built into a bookshelf.”
― Robin Sloan, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

“Life is classified. There is always so much that goes unsaid.”
― Ally Carter, Out of Sight, Out of Time

“Townsend shrugged. 'With all due respect to the good doctor, I highly suspect he's a moron.”
― Ally Carter, Out of Sight, Out of Time

“Waffles. Im craving waffles."
Bex rolled onto her side. "Tell your waffles hi for me.”
― Ally Carter, Out of Sight, Out of Time

“I also packed explosives."

-Liz”
― Ally Carter, Out of Sight, Out of Time