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Quote by William Lyon Phelps

“A bibliophile of little means is likely to suffer often. Books don't slip from his hands but fly past him through the air, high as birds, high as prices.”

Quote by William Lyon Phelps

Author

William Lyon Phelps

William Lyon Phelps was an American author, scholar, and literary critic renowned for his in-depth analysis and commentary on English literature. He is particularly known for his work on British literature, covering a range of authors from Shakespeare to the late 19th century. Phelps's writings have had a profound impact on literary studies and teaching. more

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“It is possible I never learned the names of birds in order to discover the bird of peace, the bird of paradise, the bird of the soul, the bird of desire. It is possible I avoided learning the names of composers and their music the better to close my eyes and listen to the mystery of all music as an ocean. It may be I have not learned dates in history in order to reach the essence of timelessness. It may be I never learned geography the better to map my own routes and discover my own lands. The unknown was my compass. The unknown was my encyclopedia. The unnamed was my science and progress.”

May Soul Eye Desire Order Names My Own Progress Mystery Land Ocean Bird Essence Paradise Maps Composer Routes Compass Avoided Geography Timelessness Encyclopedia

Author:Anais Nin

“Poison or elixir, narcotic or aphrodisiac, whatever it was, this flower, relic of a day in the life of an accidental writer, an inadvertent counterfeiter leaving his traces in code, the birds were coming to try it, performing a dance for no one and flying up toward the moon.”

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Author:Cesar Aira

“Four geological eras had to pass so that human beings would be able to outsing the birds and die for love.”

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Author:Gabriel Garcia Marquez

“That is where homeland is. In that shifting space, kinfolk know one another by secret signs; and wherever kinfolk meet, homeland soil coalesces about their feet in the mysterious way that coral cays, like seabirds pausing in flight, anchor themselves to the Barrier Reef.”

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Book:Collected Stories

Source: Collected Stories

“In order to weep, I had descended to the realm of the dead themselves, to their secret chambers, led by the invisible but soft hands of birds down stairways which were folded up again as I advanced. I displayed my grief in the friendly fields of death, far from men: within myself.”

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Book:Funeral Rites

Source: Funeral Rites

“My jaw dropped open. Holy crows...There's a couple of eagles mixed in there, Luke commented.And a few hawks, Aiden added.I rolled my eyes. Okay. Holy birds of prey! Is that better?Much, Aiden murmured.”

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Author:J. Lynn

“Brod discovered 613 sadnesses, each perfectly unique, each a singular emotion, no more similar to any other sadness than to anger, ecstasy, guilt, or frustration. Mirror Sadness. Sadness of Domesticated Birds. Sadness of Being Sad in front of One's Parent. Humor Sadness. Sadness of Love Without Release.”

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Book:Everything Is Illuminated

Source: Everything Is Illuminated

“Twenty thousand birds moved away from me as one, like a ground-hugging white cloud, clucking softly.”

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Book:The Omnivore's Dilemma: The Search for a Perfect Meal in a Fast-Food World

Source: The Omnivore's Dilemma: The Search for a Perfect Meal in a Fast-Food World

“O trees of life, O when are you wintering?We are not unified. We have no instinctslike those of migratory birds. Useless, and late,we force ourselves, suddenly, onto the wind,and fall down to an indifferent lake.We realise flowering and fading together.And somewhere lions still roam. Never knowing,as long as they have their splendour, of any weakness.”

“Along with rising and falling water, winter is the province of wind. When the sea-breath and mountain-roar bend the hemlocks of these hills, the birds hang on as best they can.”

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Book:Sky Time in Gray's River: Living for Keeps in a Forgotten Place

Source: Sky Time in Gray's River: Living for Keeps in a Forgotten Place