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Sara Gruen

Sara Gruen Books

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“Even in your twenties you know how old you are. I'm twenty-three, you say, or maybe twenty-seven. But then in your thirties something strange starts to happen. It's a mere hiccup at first, an instant of hesitation. How old are you? Oh, I'm – you start confidently, but then you stop. You were going to say thirty-three, but you're not. You're thirty-five. And then you're bothered, because you wonder if this is the beginning of the end. It is, of course, but it's decades before you admit it.”

AgeThirties
Author:Sara Gruen
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“It's hard to reconcile this August with the other one. and to be honest I don't try very hard. I've seen flashes of this August before-This brightness, this conviviality, this generosity of spirit-but I know what he's capable of, and I won't forget it. The others can believe what they like, but I don't believe for a second that this is the real August and the other an aberration And yet I can see how they might be fooled-”

AugustWater For ElephantsChapter 17Page 294Jacob JankowskiPage 293
Book:Water for Elephants
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“To say that I wished I wasn't there would be a ludicrous understatement, but I'd only ever had the illusion of choice: We have to do this, Hank had said. It's for Ellis. To refuse would have been an act of calculated cruelty. And so, because of my husband's war with his father and their insane obsession with a mythical monster, we'd crossed the Atlantic at the very same time a real madman, a real monster, was attempting to take over the world for his own reasons of ego and pride.”

MonstersFathersSara GruenAt The Water S Edge
Author:Sara Gruen
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“When you are five, you know your age down to the month. Even in your twenties, you know how old you are. I'm twenty-three you say, or maybe twenty-seven. But then in your thirties, something strange starts to happen. It is a mere hiccup at first, an instant of hesitation. How old are you? Oh, I'm--you start confidently, but then you stop. You were going to say thirty-three, but you are not. You're thirty-five. And then you're bothered, because you wonder if this is the beginning of the end. It is, of course, but it's decades before you admit it.”

IfsKnowsFirstsEndsHappensAgeThreeCoursesWonderKnow HowFiveStrangeMonthsTwentiesAgingMereSevenDecadesInstantThirtyBotheredHesitationOld YouHiccups
Author:Sara Gruen
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“Age is a terrible thief. Just when you're getting the hang of life, it knocks your legs out from under you and stoops your back. It makes you ache and muddies your head and silently spreads cancer throughout your spouse.”

AgeTerribleCancerLegsSpreadThievesElephantsSpouseAcheStoopsWater For Elephants
Book:The Sara Gruen Collection: Water for Elephants - At the Water's Edge - Ape House
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“Afterward, I curl around her. We lie in silence until darkness falls, and then, haltingly, she begins to talk...She speaks without need or even room for response, so I simply hold her and stroke her hair. She talks of the pain, grief, and horror of the past four years; of learning to cope with being the wife of a man so violent and unpredictable his touch made her skin crawl and of thinking, until quite recently, that she'd finally managed to do that. And then, finally, of how my appearance had forced her to realize she hadn't learned to cope at all.”

ThinkingMenNeedsYearsMadePainPastLyingFallSpeakRealizingRoomsGriefSilenceDarknessFourWifeHairHorrorSkinsResponseAppearanceViolentFour YearsStrokesUnpredictableCurls
Author:Sara Gruen
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“Sometimes when you get older — and I’m not talking about you, I’m talking generally, because everyone ages differently — things you think on and wish on start to seem real. And then you believe them, and before you know it they’re part of your history, and if someone challenges you on them and says they’re not true — why, then you get offended because you can’t remember the first part. All you know is that you’ve been called a liar.”

IfsThinkingKnowsFirstsBelieveRealSometimesSeemsAgeRememberWishChallengesTalkingLiarsOffendedNot Talking
Author:Sara Gruen
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“My platitudes don't hold their interest and I can hardly blame them for that. My real stories are all out of date. So what if I can speak firsthand about the Spanish flu, the advent of the automobile, world wars, cold wars, guerrilla wars, and Sputnik — that's all ancient history now. But what else do I have to offer? Nothing happens to me anymore. That's the reality of getting old, and I guess that's really the crux of the matter. I'm not ready to be old yet.”

IfsWorldI CanWarRealMatterStoriesRealityHappensSpeakInterestReadyColdOffersBlameAncientWar Of The WorldsWhat IfCold WarGetting OldAutomobileFluNot ReadyAdventPlatitudesGuerrillasReal StoryAncient HistoryCruxSputnik
Author:Sara Gruen
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