Daniel’s Reviews > Ports of Call > Status Update

Feelings ran so high that it was no longer possible to express conciliatory opinions out loud.

He withdrew himself from the rest of the world.

He began by taking a life in order to be born.

"He profoundly despised the attitude, common throughout the Near East, tries to soothe sensitivities and cares for appearances; the attitude that makes one whisper to ones guests."

In Lebanon, and especially in my town, reputation and appearances are everything. Obsession with appearances can make communities shallow and disconnected. Relationships become about status instead of sincerity. Prevents genuine dialogue.

Love is such a powerful and spontaneous feeling, that it must posses you completely, it isn't something one can acquire with time.

Life is not so long that one can grow tired of it.

You die only when the oil in the lamp of your life has been used up.

“My God, how blue the sky was that day!”

I suppose we all met a Clara.

An incredibly captivating book so far; it’s as if I’m reading someone’s journal, not in the intrusive sense but more so it is welcoming (am I even making sense?, it’s a bit late now imma sleeeepppp). I just can’t put it down.

I remain silent for decades, to the point where I lose my taste for words.

They all wanted to know what lay behind my silences. So, in order not to lose face, I spoke, “for once”.

Those who speak out too loudly make it impossible for themselves to act.

Maalouf’s style of writing does remind me of Kazuo Ishiguro. Rather elementary yet gravitating.

“I too wanted to change the world, in my own way”.