Quotessence
Home / Books / The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel

The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel

Book by David Levithan · 23 quotes · Ifs, Want, Way

Filter quotes by topic

AllIfsWantWaySaidFeelsKnowsLoversStillsWantedFeelingsMeanMomentsPeopleThinkingAbilityEnoughKindLove YouMinesNeeds

The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel Quotes

“In school, the year was the marker. Fifth grade. Senior year of high school. Sophomore year of college. Then after, the jobs were the marker. That office. This desk. But now that school is over and I've been working at the same place in the same office at the same desk for longer than I can truly believe, I realize: You have become the marker. This is your era. And it's only if it goes on and on that will have to look for other ways to identify the time.”

IfsWayYearsBelieveLooksI CanSchoolJobsRealizingCollegeGoes OnOfficeHigh SchoolErasGradesDesksSeniorFifthMarkersSophomoreSenior YearFifth GradeSophomore Year
Book:The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel
Create image

“Even when I detach, I care. You can be separate from a thing and still care about it. If I wanted to detach completely, I would move my body away. I would stop the conversation midsentence. I would leave the bed. Instead, I hover over it for a second. I glance off in another direction. But I always glance back at you.”

IfsStillsBodyCareWantedMovingBedConversationOver ItI CareGlances
Book:The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel
Create image

“incessant adj. The doubts. You had to save me from my constant doubts. That deep-seeded feeling that I wasn't good enough for anything I was a fake at my job I wasn't your equal my friends would forget me if I moved away for a month. It wasn't as easy as hearing voices nobody was telling me this. It was just something I knew. Everyone else was playing along but I was sure that one day they would all stop.”

IfsEnoughFeelingsJobsEasyVoiceForgetDoubtMonthsOne DayEqualMy FriendsMovedConstantHearingFakeGood EnoughSave MeIncessantForget MeHearing Voices
Book:The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel
Create image

“...and suddenly you started singing out your love for me. My name and everything, loud enough to reach the top floors of all the buildings. I should have told you to stop, but I didn’t want you to stop. I didn’t mind if your love for me woke people up. I didn’t mind if it somehow sneaked into their sleep.”

PeopleIfsWantShouldMindEnoughNamesSleepBuildingSingingShould HaveLoud
Book:The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel
Create image

“It daunted me that you were so beautiful, that you were so at ease in social situations, as if every room was heliotropic, with you at the center. And I guess it daunted you that I had so many more friends than you, that I could put my words together like this, on paper, and could sometimes conjure a certain sense out of things. The key is to never recognize these imbalances. To not let the dauntingness daunt us.”

IfsSometimesTogetherBeautifulCertainSocialRoomsSituationKeysPaperEaseImbalance
Book:The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel
Create image

“"I want you to spend the night," you said. And it was definitely your phrasing that ensured it. If you had said, "Let's have sex," or "Let's go to my place," or even "I really want you," I'm not sure we would have gone quite as far as we did. But I loved the notion that the night was mine to spend, and I immediately decided to spend it with you.”

IfsWantSaidNightSexGoneMinesLoversDecidedNotionNot SureI Want You
Book:The Lover's Dictionary: A Novel
Create image