#ding

We keep quiet about what we read. Our enjoyment of a book remains a jealously guarded secret. Perhaps because there`s no need to talk, or because it takes time to distill what we've read before we can say anything. Silence is our guarantee of intimacy. We might have finished reading but we`re still living the book. ↗

— Daniel Pennac

#literature #reading #intimacy

In much the same way, motherhood has become the essential female experience, valued above all others: giving life is where it's at. "Pro-maternity" propaganda has rarely been so extreme. They must be joking, the modern equivalent of the double constraint: "Have babies, it's wonderful, you'll feel more fulfilled and feminine than ever," but do it in a society in freefall in which waged work is a condition of social survival but guaranteed to no one, and especially not to women. Give birth in cities where accommodation is precarious, schools have surrendered the fight and children are subject to the most vicious mental assault through advertising, TV, internet, fizzy drink manufacturers and so on. Without children you will never be fulfilled as a woman, but bringing up kids in decent conditions is almost impossible. ↗

— Virginie Despentes

#consumerism #female-authors #feminism #motherhood #politics

No one knows as well as I how much nonsense is printed in books. ↗

— Julia Quinn

#reading #nonsense

The delights of reading impart the vivacity of youth even to old age. ↗

— Isaac D'Israeli

#reading #age

We started the AIDS virus. We are only able to maintain our level of living by making sure that Third World people live in grinding poverty. ↗

— Jeremiah Wright

#aids #grinding #level #live #living

I find it ironic that happy endings now are called fairytale endings because there's nothing happy about most fairytale endings. ↗

— Joe Wright

#because #called #endings #fairytale #find

For what the horse does under compulsion, as Simon also observes, is done without understanding; and there is no beauty in it either, any more than if one should whip and spur a dancer. ↗

— Xenophon

#any #beauty #compulsion #dancer #does

Printed works do not take up mental space simply by virtue of being there; attention must be paid or their content, whether simple or complex, can never be truly assimilated. The willed attention demanded by print is the antithesis of the reflexive distraction encouraged by infotainment media, whether one is talking about the tunes on an iPod, a picture flashing briefly on a home page, a text message, a video game, or the latest offering of "reality" TV. That all of these sources of information and entertainment are capable of simultaneously engendering distraction and absorption accounts for much of their snakelike charm. ↗

— Susan Jacoby

#infotainment #reading-motivation #age

We must take the money out of politics, and end psychopathic, self-destructive government and corporate madness. ↗

— Bryant McGill

#improvement #love #peace #understanding #unity

Everytime i fail, i doubt..and feel bad about myself. But on the other hand, it reminds me that i'm no better compared to anyone. Just got lucky - and for that, i have to be thankful. In life, everything serves its purpose. Being at the peak of your game feels good but don't forget to keep your feet on the ground. To have lived a better life doesn't give you a license to look down on anyone. We're all the same...just be thankful that some of us got lucky. ↗

— Jennifer Tindugan-Adoviso

#failing #perseverance #pride #succeeding #attitude