(Notable Quotables is a meme brought to you by the Bewitched Bookworms. Every Monday you’re invited to share a favorite quote or two from the books you’ve been reading.)
Ooh, a quote meme! Not only am I obsessed with cataloging all my books — I collect quotes too! And this meme gives me the perfect chance to share them. I’ll try to resist the urge to quote entire books…although I make no guarantees. On to this week’s quotes!
“This is not a novel tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force.” – Dorothy Parker
Ah, Dorothy Parker. Not only was she a good writer, she was extremely clever, quick-witted, and (my favorite) snarky. Her articles and stories are great, but it’s her quips that really make me laugh.
“There had been but little snow as yet this year, and the cold was intense. On his right now the Cimetiere des SS. Innocents lay peaceful and still beneath the wan light of the moon. A thin covering of frost lay evenly alike on grass mounds and smooth stones. Here and there a broken cross with chipped arms still held pathetically outstretched, as if in a final appeal for human love, bore mute testimony to senseless excesses and spiteful desire for destruction.
But here–within the precincts of the dwelling of the eternal Master–a solemn silence reigned; only the cold north wind shook the branches of the yew, causing them to send forth a melancholy sign into the night, and to shed a shower of tiny crystals like the frozen tears of the dead.” – Eldorado, by Baroness Emmuska Orczy
Eldorado is the second book in Orczy’s fabulous series about the dashing Sir Percival Blakeney and his daring adventures as The Scarlet Pimpernel, savior of French aristocrats during the French Revolution. I first saw the made-for-television movie (starring Anthony Andrews and Jane Seymour), and have since read The Scarlet Pimpernel and Eldorado. If you’re looking for a great swashbuckling adventure with some romance thrown in, look no further than Orczy (and I can’t recommend the 1982 film enough).
This is awesome! I think I’ll be sticking with it. See you guys tomorrow for more bookish fun!
