“You must not forget that a monster is only a variation, and that to a monster the norm is monstrous.”
― East of Eden
― East of Eden
“We have only one story. All novels, all poetry, are built on the neverending contest in ourselves of good and evil. And it occurs to me that evil must constantly respawn, while good, while virtue, is immortal. Vice has always a new fresh young face, while virtue is venerable as nothing else in the world is.”
― East of Eden
― East of Eden
“But the Hebrew word, the word timshel—‘Thou mayest’— that gives a choice. It might be the most important word in the world. That says the way is open. That throws it right back on a man. For if ‘Thou mayest’—it is also true that ‘Thou mayest not.”
― East of Eden
― East of Eden
“There are no ugly questions except those clothed in condescension.”
― East of Eden
― East of Eden
“It set him free,” said Lee. “It gave him the right to be a man, separate from every other man.”
“That’s lonely.”
“All great and precious things are lonely.”
“What is the word again?”
“Timshel—thou mayest.”
― East of Eden
“That’s lonely.”
“All great and precious things are lonely.”
“What is the word again?”
“Timshel—thou mayest.”
― East of Eden
Black Coffee
— 3081 members
— last activity 6 hours, 27 min ago
This group focuses on books written by or about black people from all continents in many different genres though we focus on historical fiction and cl ...more
Marcus’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Marcus’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
Favorite Genres
Polls voted on by Marcus
Lists liked by Marcus






























