“This was the first time that he has ever looked into the labyrinth of the human soul. He was very far from understanding what he saw. But what was of more value, he felt and suffered with her. In years that were yet to come, he relived this memory in song, in the most beautiful song this world has known. For the understanding of the soul's defencelessness, of the conflict between the two poles, is not the source of the greatest song. The source of the greatest song is sympathy.”
― Independent People
― Independent People
“for there is nothing heavier than compassion. Not even one's own pain weighs so heavy as the pain one feels with someone, for someone, a pain intensified by the imagination and prolonged by a hundred echoes.”
― The Unbearable Lightness of Being
― The Unbearable Lightness of Being
“And so it goes...”
― Slaughterhouse-Five
― Slaughterhouse-Five
“I've committed to nothing...and that's just suicide...by tiny, tiny increments.”
― High Fidelity
― High Fidelity
Brian’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Brian’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
More friends…
Favorite Genres
Polls voted on by Brian
Lists liked by Brian

























