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“The breath of battle blew across to us, and we shuddered.”

Tears

Hits like a nuclear bomb

But the wisdom of Soul Catcher whispered to him and he saw the trickery in her woman power.

Katsuk glanced at the terrified boy. Innocent? Could sex make the difference? No. The quality of innocence was something else. It was tangled with intent and sensitivity. Was there selfishness in this hoquat? Was he indifferent to the fate of others? Was he capable of self sacrifice?

Innocence is not taken by being used.

“Women had powers.”

“Night and day were only separations of fear for this young man’s people.”

“I am Katsuk, thy torch, who will set this world aflame.”

“Ransom? Do you think I could ransom you for an entire world?”

“Fear had gone through him and left him clean.”

“Why was I chosen for this?”

Terrible purpose!

“I had to know I could love a person unconditionally, that I could make a little creature feel constantly welcome and wanted no matter what. That I could be a different kind of father than my dad was. That I could raise a boy who wasn't like me.”

What. The. Fuck.

This book feels so real it makes me want to puke

War is the ultimate desecration

Green continues to excel in both prose and presentation. The picture gains more depth and continues to fill my understanding of history. I had no idea of the political history of Aristotle nor of his tutoring of Alexander until recently. It’s interesting to see Athens as a state in decline, desperate for an old empire, while its subjects become disillusioned

“Of what use are possessions if I achieve nothing?”

“The polis, the city state, had run its course: a new era was dawning.”

Upon listening to HH’s episode about Alexander the Great I have fallen under a bout of fascination with this time period. Green’s presentation is spectacular—excellent storytelling, a mixture of academic and irreverent prose, makes it simultaneously incredibly entertaining and educational. Some moments sent shudders through me

Holy fuck

Chapter 2. So far, a surprisingly shrewd portrait of America. So much more depthful than I remember

I will finish this book this week