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“How strange to feel something so close to mercy, whatever that was, and stranger still that it should be found in here of all places, at the end of a road of ruined houses by a toxic river. That among a pile of salvaged trash, he would come closest to all he ever wanted to be: a consciousness sitting under a light-bulb reading his days away, warm and alone, alone and yet, somehow, still somebody's son.”
― The Emperor of Gladness
― The Emperor of Gladness
“The hardest thing in the world is to live only once. But it’s beautiful here, even the ghosts agree.”
― The Emperor of Gladness
― The Emperor of Gladness
“Hai considered this. Indeed, at what granular material moment did bread become cake? Or was it always cake, falsely named to amplify bread beyond its potential?”
― The Emperor of Gladness
― The Emperor of Gladness
“You say I'm so smart, right? Cause I went to college and all that? Then listen to me." He put both hands on Sony's shoulders. "Most people are soft and scared. They're fucking mushy. We are a mushy species. You talk to anybody for more than half an hour and you realize everything they do is a sham to keep themselves from falling apart. From prison guards to teachers, to managers, psychiatrists, even fathers, anybody - even your stupid generals. People put on this facade of strength. They act like they have a purpose and a mission and their whole life is supposed to lead to this grand fucking thesis of who they are.”
― The Emperor of Gladness
― The Emperor of Gladness
“How can I know what Marta knows? Some things belong to those who lived them.”
― The Emperor of Gladness
― The Emperor of Gladness
Memoirs and Biographies We Love
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A place to share memoirs, biographies, autobiographies (and maybe even fiction-based-in-reality) that you have enjoyed!
Haruki Murakami Book Group
— 5973 members
— last activity Sep 23, 2026 10:04AM
Discuss all things Haruki Murakami: novels, short stories, non-fiction, books about HM, translation projects, related music/film, interviews, symbolis ...more
Underground Knowledge — A discussion group
— 26265 members
— last activity 13 hours, 37 min ago
This global discussion group has been designed to encourage debates about important and underreported issues of our era. All you need is an enquiring ...more
Pema’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Pema’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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