“There's a strange contradiction revealed by the naivete and kindness demonstrated by humanity when faced with the universe: On Earth, humankind can step onto another continent, and without a though, destroy the kindred civilizations found there through warfare and disease. But when they gaze up at the stars, they turn sentimental and believe that if extraterrestrial intelligences exist, they must be civilizations bound by universal, noble, moral constraints, as if cherishing and loving different forms of life are parts of a self-evident universal code of conduct.”
― The Three-Body Problem
― The Three-Body Problem
“There's this idea that if you're not straight, you HAVE to tell all your family and friends immediately, like you owe it to them. But you don't. You don't have to do anything until you're ready.”
― Heartstopper: Volume Three
― Heartstopper: Volume Three
“No job in the world is worth destroying yourself over, even if you work in a brilliant, beautiful place like the NHS. It’s OK to take a break or a breather. It’s also OK to step away altogether, if that’s the right thing to do. In a world of people telling you not to rock the boat, sometimes you have to fuck the boat. Do it with as much love and tenderness as you can manage, but grab your trunks and start swimming. Only you know what’s in your heart – whether it’s becoming a caricaturist in Leicester Square, moving to Chad or moving in with Chad. I promise you’ll sleep a lot better.”
― Undoctored: The Story of a Medic Who Ran Out of Patients
― Undoctored: The Story of a Medic Who Ran Out of Patients
“ENT is commonly known as Early Nights and Tennis - a good choice of specialty if you like a quiet Christmas. See also, dermaholiday.”
― Twas the Nightshift Before Christmas
― Twas the Nightshift Before Christmas
“Doctors must be psychologically fit for the job — able to make decisions under a terrifying amount of pressure, able to break bad news to us anguished relatives, able to deal with death on a daily basis. They must have something that cannot be memorized and graded; a great doctor must have a huge heart and a distended aorta which pumps a vast lake of compassion and human kindness.”
― This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor
― This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor
Elle’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Elle’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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