Quotessence
Home / Authors / Jim Butcher
Jim Butcher

Jim Butcher Quotes

Author

Filter quotes by topic

AllHarry DresdenDresdenSaidIfsPeopleKnowsThinkingWayDresden FilesLittlesMenJim ButcherThomas RaithHumorMeanEyeKindLooksMagicWant

Famous Jim Butcher Quotes

“Maybe this was a male-female translation problem. I read an article once that said that when women have a conversation, they're communicating on five levels. They follow the conversation that they're actually having, the conversation that is specifically being avoided, the tone being applied to the overt conversation, the buried conversation that is being covered only in subtext, and finally the other person's body language. That is, on many levels, astounding to me. I mean, that's like having a freaking superpower. When I, and most other people with a Y chromosome, have a conversation, we're having a conversation. Singular. We're paying attention to what is being said, considering that, and replying to it. All these other conversations that have apparently been going on for the last several thousand years? I didn't even know that they ~existed~ until I read that stupid article, and I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one.”

MenWomenRelationshipsCommunicationMen And WomenDatingGenderCommunication SkillsWomen And MenGender StereotypesGender DifferencesCommunication Problem
Book:Cold Days
Create image

“A man's magic demonstrates what sort of person he is, what is held most deeply inside of him. There is no truer gauge of a man's character than the way in which he employs his strength, his power. I was not a murderer. I was not like Victor Sells. I was Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden. I was a wizard. Wizards control their power. They don't let it control them. And wizards don't use magic to kill people. They use it to discover, to protect, to mend, to help. Not to destroy.”

PeopleMenWayPersonsCharacterHelpingUseMagicProtectSellsMurdererWizardsGaugesDresden
Book:Storm Front: Book one of The Dresden Files
Create image

“All things pass in time. We are far less significant than we imagine ourselves to be. All that we are, all that we have wrought, is but a shadow, no matter how durable it may seem. One day, when the last man has breathed his last breath, the sun will shine, the mountains will stand, the rain will fall, the streams will whisper—and they will not miss him.”

MenMayMatterSeemsLastsFallSunImagineMissingOne DayMountainShadowRainAll ThingsBreathsShiningSignificantStreams
Book:Princeps' Fury
Create image

“Murphy watched me thoughtfully for several empty seconds. Then she said, very gently, "You're a good man, Harry." I swallowed and bowed my head, made humble by the tone of her voice and the expression on her face, more than the words themselves. Not always rational," she said, smiling. "But you're the best kind of crazy.”

MenKindMadeSaidFacesVoiceCrazyExpressionEmptyHumbleRationalToneGood ManSecondsMurphyDresdenYou Re The BestKarrin Murphy
Author:Jim Butcher
Create image

“They say you can know a man by his enemies, Dresden." He smiled, and laughter lurked beneath his next words, never quite surfacing. "You defy beings that should cow you into silence. You resist forces that are inevitable for no more reason than that you believe they should be resisted. You bow your head to neither demons nor angels, and you put yourself in harm's way to defend those who cannot defend themselves." He nodded slowly. "I think I like you.”

ThinkingKnowsMenWayShouldBelieveReasonNextForceSilenceEnemyLike YouLaughterAngelHarmInevitableDemonCowsBowsDresdenI Like You
Book:Changes: A Novel of the Dresden Files
Create image

“Susan hardly had begun to slow down when Tera appeared from between a couple of buildings and loped over to the car. I leaned forward, opened the door, and she got into the backseat. I threw her the extra clothes I had picked up, and she began to dress without comment. It worked," I said. "We did it." Of course it worked," Tera said. "Men are foolish. They will stare at anything female and naked.”

MenSaidCoursesDoorsCarBuildingCoupleClothesFemaleDressesFoolishNakedStaringExtrasCommentSlow DownBackseat
Book:The Dresden Files Collection 1-6
Create image

“...the Female Once-Over - a process by which one woman creates a detailed profile of another woman based upon about a million subtle details of clothing, jewelry, makeup, and body type, and then decides how much of a social threat she might be. Men have a parallel process, but it's binary: Does he have beer? If yes, will he share with me?”

IfsMenDoeBodyMightSocialProcessMillionsShareTypeFemaleThreatDetailsBeerSubtleMakeupClothingsParallelsBe A ManJewelryProfileOne WomanDresdenAnother WomanBinaryBody TypesDresden Files
Author:Jim Butcher
Create image

“Maybe my values are outdated, but I come from an old school of thought. I think that men ought to treat women like something other than just shorter, weaker men with breasts. Try and convict me if I’m a bad person for thinking so. I enjoy treating a woman like a lady, opening doors for her, paying for shared meals, giving flowers–all that sort of thing.”

IfsThinkingMenGivingTryingPersonsSchoolValuesEnjoyDoorsFlowerOughtTreatsOpeningMealsBreastsLike SomethingOld SchoolConvictsOutdatedOpening Doors
Author:Jim Butcher
Create image

“Screw up my life?" He stared at me for a second and then said, deadpan, "I'm a five-foot-three, thirty-seven-year-old, single, Jewish medical examiner who needs to pick up his lederhosen from the dry cleaners so that he can play in a one-man polka band at Oktoberfest tomorrow." He pushed up his glasses with his forefinger, folded his arms, and said, "Do your worst.”

MenNeedsYearsSaidPlayThreeFiveFeetWorstArmsTomorrowBandPicksSevenGlassesMedicalThirtyDryOne ManScrewsSeven YearsCleanersScrew UpsDresdenHarry DresdenPolkaDry Cleaners
Book:Dead Beat: A Novel of The Dresden Files
Create image

“Have you ever been approached by a grim-looking man, carrying a naked sword with a blade about ten miles long in his hand, in the middle of the night, beneath the stars on the shores of Lake Michigan? If you have, seek professional help. If you have not, then believe you me, it can scare the bejeezus out of you.”

IfsMenBelieveLongHelpingHandsNightStarsMiddleTenMilesNakedLakesShoreScareBladesGrimMichiganMiddle Of The Night
Book:Storm Front: Book one of The Dresden Files
Create image

“I grunted. It's something I picked up over a fifteen-year career in law enforcement. Men have managed to create a complex and utterly impenetrable secret language consisting of monosyllabic sounds and partial words—and they are apparently too thick to realize it exists. Maybe they really are from Mars. I'd been able to learn a few Martian phrases over time, and one of the useful ones was the grunt that meant "I acknowledge that I've heard what you said; please continue.”

MenYearsSaidAbleLawLanguageSoundRealizingSecretCareersHeardPleaseComplexesAcknowledgePhrasesThickFifteenMarsLaw EnforcementEnforcementIn-lawsFifteen YearsMartiansGrunt
Book:Side Jobs: Stories from the Dresden Files
Create image

“He’s being held prisoner on a ceramic-lined cookie sheet in the oven,” Thomas said. “I figured he couldn’t jigger his way out of a bunch of steel, and it would give him something to think about before we start asking questions.” “That’s an awful thing to do to one of the Little Folk, man,” I said. “I’m planning to start making a pie in front of him.” “Nice.” “Thank you.”

ThinkingMenWayGivingLittlesSaidNiceFrontsAskingFolksPlanningBunchAwfulThings To DoPrisonerPieSteelSheetsCookiesAsking QuestionsOvensCeramics
Author:Jim Butcher
Create image