Softwear

“And could a man sink to such triviality, such meanness, such nastiness? Could he change so much? And is it true to life? Yes, it is all true to life. All this can happen to a man. The ardent youth of today would start back in horror if you could show him his portrait in old age. As you pass from the soft years of youth into harsh, hardening manhood, be sure you take with you on the way all the humane emotions, do not leave them on the road: you will not pick them up again afterwards!”
― Nikolai Gogol, Dead Souls

“The lake was a shield of beaten brass flung down in the valley under a full sun.”
― Jane Urquhart, The Stone Carvers

“It has taken stealth and some underhandedness. It has taken clarity of purpose when the moment called for dreamy abandon. He has practised withdrawal.”
― Lisa Moore, February

“It doesn't matter what people call you unless they call you pigeon pie and eat you up.”
― Evelyn Waugh, Brideshead Revisited