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The Fairyland Series

Book by Catherynne M. Valente · 44 quotes · Ifs, September, Heart

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The Fairyland Series Quotes

“Such lonely, lost things you find on your way. It would be easier, if you were the only one lost. But lost children always find each other, in the dark, in the cold. It is as though they are magnetized and can only attract their like. How I would like to lead you to brave, stalwart friends who would protect you and play games with dice and teach you delightful songs that have no sad endings. If you would only leave cages locked and turn away from unloved Wyverns, you could stay Heartless.”

IfsWayLoveChildrenPlayWould BeAgeSongTurnsGamesLostDarkTeachColdEasierProtectEmpathyLonelyBraveLockedDelightfulCagesHeartlessDiceProtect YouUnlovedStalwartLost ChildSad EndingLost Things
Book:The Fairyland Series
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“She liked anything orange: leaves; some moons; marigolds; chrysanthemums; cheese; pumpkin, both in pie and out; orange juice; marmalade. Orange is bright and demanding. You can't ignore orange things. She once saw an orange parrot in the pet store and had never wanted anything so much in her life. She would have named it Halloween and fed it butterscotch. Her mother said butterscotch would make a bird sick and, besides, the dog would certainly eat it up. September never spoke to the dog again — on principle.”

SaidWantedMotherPrinciplesSawsDogMoonBirdSickStoresPetSpokesFedsCheesePieSeptemberHalloweenOrangeJuicePumpkinParrotsOrange JuiceMarmaladeChrysanthemumsMarigoldsButterscotch
Book:The Fairyland Series
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“Wishes of one's old life wither and shrivel like old leaves if they are not replaced with new wishes when the world changes. And the world always changes. Wishes get slimy, and their colors fade, and soon they are just mud, like all the rest of the mud, and not wishes at all, but regrets. The trouble is, not everyone can tell when they ought to launder their wishes. Even when one finds oneself in Fairyland and not at home at all, it is not always so easy to remember to catch the world in it's changing and change with it.”

IfsWorldHomeRememberWishEasyTroubleColorRegretOughtOneselfFadesReplacedMudOld Life
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“Hats change everything. September knew this with all her being, deep in the place where she knew her own name, and that her mother would still love her even though she hadn’t waved goodbye. For one day her father had put on a hat with golden things on it and suddenly he hadn’t been her father anymore, he had been a soldier, and he had left. Hats have power. Hats can change you into someone else.”

StillsMotherFatherNamesLeftOne DaySoldierGoldenGoodbyeHatsSeptember
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“I have terrible nightmares, you know. Every night when I come home from a long day’s dying, I take off my skin and lay it nicely on my armoire. I take off my bones and hang them up on the hatstand. I set my scythe to washing on the old stove. I eat a nice supper of mouse-and-myrrh soup. Some nights I drink off a nice red wine. White does not agree with me. I lay myself down on a bed of lilies and still, I cannot sleep.”

KnowsLongDoeStillsHomeNightSleepWhiteNiceDyingTerribleDrinkBedRedSkinsAgreeWineLaysBonesNightmareComing HomeEvery NightMiceSoupWashingLiliesSupperStovesLong DayRed WineScythes
Book:The Fairyland Series
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“I'm sure you've heard people talk about their Heart's Desire—well that's a load of rot. Hearts are idiots. They're big and squishy and full of daft dreams. They flounce off to write poetry and moon at folk who aren't worth the mooning. Bones are the ones that have to make the journey, fight the monster, kneel before whomever is big on kneeling these days. Bones do the work for the heart's grand plans. Bones know what you need. Hearts only know want.”

PeopleKnowsWantNeedsWritingWellsHeartDreamBigsDesireFightingPlansHeardJourneyMoonFolksBonesMonstersIdiotThese DaysLoadKneelingDaft
Book:The Fairyland Series
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“For there are two kinds of forgiveness in the world: the one you practice because everything really is all right, and what went before is mended. The other kind of forgiveness you practice because someone needs desperately to be forgiven, or because you need just as badly to forgive them, for a heart can grab hold of old wounds and go sour as milk over them.”

WorldNeedsHeartKindTwoPracticeForgivingWoundsMilkForgivenSourOld Wounds
Book:The Fairyland Series
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