“I do feel that I’ve managed to make something I could maybe call my world…over time…little by little. And when I’m inside it, to some extent, I feel kind of relieved. But the very fact I felt I had to make such a world probably means that I’m a weak person, that I bruise easily, don’t you think? And in the eyes of society at large, that world of mine is a puny little thing. It’s like a cardboard house: a puff of wind might carry it off somewhere.”
― After Dark
― After Dark
“It isn't an easy business (...) Love, he said finally. I was referring to love, Rebecca.”
― Autobiography of Us
― Autobiography of Us
“You know what I think?" she says. "That people's memories are maybe the fuel they burn to stay alive. Whether those memories have any actual importance or not, it doesn't matter as far as the maintenance of life is concerned. They're all just fuel. Advertising fillers in the newspaper, philosophy books, dirty pictures in a magazine, a bundle of ten-thousand-yen bills: when you feed 'em to the fire, they're all just paper. The fire isn't thinking 'Oh, this is Kant,' or 'Oh, this is the Yomiuri evening edition,' or 'Nice tits,' while it burns. To the fire, they're nothing but scraps of paper. It's the exact same thing. Important memories, not-so-important memories, totally useless memories: there's no distinction--they're all just fuel.”
― After Dark
― After Dark
“In this world, there are things you can only do alone, and things you can only do with somebody else. It's important to combine the two in just the right amount.”
― After Dark
― After Dark
“the worst thing," he told me,
"is bitterness, people end up so
bitter.”
― You Get So Alone at Times That it Just Makes Sense
"is bitterness, people end up so
bitter.”
― You Get So Alone at Times That it Just Makes Sense
Desiree’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Desiree’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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