Valerie

“You are a valuable instrument in the orchestration of your own world, and the overall harmony of the universe.”
― Suzy Kassem, Rise Up and Salute the Sun: The Writings of Suzy Kassem

“A book is a journey. Journeys need their voyagers, and voyagers require a diversity of scenes; experiences.”
― Pablito Greco

“One of the most wonderful things about Pride and Prejudice is the variety of voices it embodies. There are so many different forms of dialogue: between several people, between two people, internal dialogue and dialogue through letters. All tensions are created and resolved through dialogue. Austen's ability to create such multivocality, such diverse voices and intonations in relation and in confrontation within a cohesive structure, is one of the best examples of the democratic aspect of the novel. In Austen's novels, there are spaces for oppositions that do not need to eliminate each other in order to exist. There is also space - not just space but a necessity - for self-reflection and self-criticism. Such reflection is the cause of change. We needed no message, no outright call for plurality, to prove our point. All we needed was to reach and appreciate the cacophony of voices to understand its democratic imperative. There was where Austen's danger lay.”
― Azar Nafisi, Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books

“You must be able to say, with reasonable certainty, "I understand," before you can say "I agree," or "I disagree," or "I suspend judgment.”
― Mortimer J. Adler, How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading