Helena

“Late in the afternoon we returned to the First Vestibule. Just before we parted Raphael said, ‘I love the quiet here. No people!’ She said the last part as if it were the greatest advantage of all. ‘Don’t you like the people in your own Halls?’ I asked, puzzled. ‘I like them,’ she said, with no very great enthusiasm. ‘Mostly I like them. Some of them. I don’t always get them. They don’t always get me.”
― Susanna Clarke, Piranesi

“The Tides themselves are full of movement and power so that, while they may not exactly be alive, neither are they not-alive.”
― Susanna Clarke, Piranesi

“If you are honest, people may deceive you. Be honest anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfishness. Be kind anyway. All the good you do today will be forgotten by others tomorrow. Do good anyway.”
― Fredrik Backman, Beartown

“Sometimes life doesn’t let you choose your battles. Just the company you keep.”
― Fredrik Backman, Beartown