BOOK QUOTES –ENGLISHGRAHAM GREENE – THE COMEDIANS

ROALD DAHL – KISS KISS

DORIS LESSING – THE GRASS IS SINGING

( ENGLISH LITERATURE)

BOOST YOUR LANGUAGE SKILLS BY READING

QUOTES AND PHRASES FROM ENGLISH

LITERARY BOOKS.

By M. van Eijk/MA

It’s an inspiring way to learn and

expand your language!

English is spoken as a native language by about 375 million people and as a second language by around

375 million speakers in the world. Speakers of English as a second language will soon outnumber those who

speak it as a first language, according to research by the British Council. These quotes about learning English

can provide comic relief, inspiration or insult to any learner of the English language.

No matter how much confident and successful we are there is a time comes in life when things don't go the

way we want them. At that time, we feel depressed and sad. And we need something that can inspire us and

motivate us to get back to life. We need something that can boost our self confidence to survive through in

our tough times. This is the time when we need Motivational Literary Quotes.

GRAHAM GREENE – THE COMEDIANS

“I COULD FEEL THE TIME I HAD LEFT TO

BE ALONE WITH MARTHA DISAPPEARING

LIKE SAND IN AN EGG-TIMER, AND I

COULD ALMOST BELIEVE HE COULD SEE

IT TO.”

"I HAD TOUCHED HIS RAW WOUND.”

I GOT THE IMPRESSION JONES WOULD HAVE GOT OUT

ANYWAY, ON HIS OWN STEAM.”

“THE SKY REDDENED OVER HIS SHOULDER AND THE

PALM TREES TURNED BLACK AND DISTINCT.”

“I WAS FRIGHTENED, BUT I WAS MORE FRIGHTENED OF

SHOWING MY FEAR – THAT WOULD UNLEASH HIM. LIKE

A SAVAGE DOG HE WAS SAFER WHILE HE BARKED.”

“I ALWAYS FELT THAT MR SMITH AND I HAD A BIT

IN COMMON. HORSES OUT OF THE SAME

STABLE.”

“HE HAD BEEN BORN WITH PEACE IN HIS HEART

INSTEAD OF THE SPLINTER OF ICE.”

‘….YOU KNOW HOW THEY TREAT PRISONERS

HERE. SURELY, YOU CAN STRETCH A RULE…’

“I FELT MORE AND MORE THAT THE JOB WOULD

NOT COME MY WAY.”

‘IT’S JUST AS SHORT AS IT’S LONG, ISN’T IT?’

ROALD DAHL – KISS KISS

“AND HE TURNED AND SAW HIS LANDLADY

SAILING INTO THE ROOM WITH A LARGE SILVER

TEA-TRAY IN HER HANDS. SHE WAS HOLDING IT

WELL OUT IN FRONT OF HER, AND RATHER HIGH

UP, AS THOUGH THE TRAY WERE A PAIR OF RAINS

ON A FRISKY HORSE.”

“IN ONE EAR AND OUT THE OTHER, THAT’S ME, MR

WEAVER.”

“HOWEVER, LIKE THE FAITHFUL WIFE SHE WAS,

SHE DIDN’T OVERSTAY HER TIME.”

“THE HAWTHORN WAS EXPLODING WHITE AND

PINK AND RED AND THE PRIMROSES WERE

GROWING UNDERNEATH IN LITTLE CLUMPS, AND

IT WAS BEAUTIFUL.”

“AND THERE IT WAS! MR BOGGIS SAW IT AT

ONCE, AND HE STOPPED DEAD IN HIS TRACKS

AND GAVE A LITTLE SHRILL GASP OF SHOCK.”

“DOWN BELOW, THE COUNTRYSIDE WAS SPREAD

OUT BEFORE HIM LIKE A HUGE GREEN CARPET.

HE COULD SEE FOR MILES.”

“HE FOUND HIMSELF GIGGLING QUITE

UNCONTROLLABLY, AND THERE WAS A FEELING

INSIDE HIM AS THOUGH HUNDREDS AND

HUNDREDS OF TINY BUBBLES WERE RISING UP

FROM HIS STOMACH AND BURSTING MERRILY IN

THE TOP OF HIS HEAD.”

DORIS LESSING – THE GRASS IS SINGING

“BUT MARY WAS STIFF WITH RESENTMENT,

BECAUSE SHE HAD NOTICED MRS SLATTER

LOOKING KEENLY ROUND THE ROOM, PRICING

EVERY CUSHION, NOTICING THE NEW

WHITEWASH AND THE CURTAINS.”

“HE FELT HE HAD BEEN GIVEN AN INJECTION OF

NEW VIGOUR…”

’LEAVE HER, ‘SAID CHARLIE. ‘SHE’LL COME OFF

HER HIGH HORSE.’

“HER HEART LIFTED AS SHE NEARED THE CLUB.”

“FOR A MOMENT THE MAN LOOKED AT HER

WITH AN EXPRESSION THAT TURNED HER

STOMACH LIQUID WITH FEAR.”

“THAT WAS HOW SHE HAD COME TO FEEL.

AND IT WAS BITTER BECAUSE IT WAS

SELF-IMPOSED POVERTY.”

“SHE SAW HIM STANDING IN THE MIDDLE OF

THE BIG RED LAND, BALANCED AMONG THE

HUGE CLODS, A SPARE, FLY-AWAY FIGURE

WITH HIS BIG FLOPPING HEAD AND LOOSE

CLOTHING, AND WONDERED HOW PEOPLE

CAME TO BE BORN WITHOUT THAT STREAK

OF DETERMINATION, THAT BIT OF IRON THAT

CLAMPED THE PERSONALITY TOGETHER.

DICK WAS SO NICE – SO NICE! SHE SAID TO

HERSELF WEARILY.’

‘You should have thought of that before you

married me,’said Dick, and she blazed into fury

because of his callous injustice.

Or rather, she almost blazed into anger. Her face

went beef-red, her eyes snapped – and than she

subsided again, folding trembling hands over each

other, shutting her eyes.

‘

‘I DO SO LIKE IT WHEN THE RAINS COME, SHE

WOULD SAY CONVERSATIONALLY, GIGGLE A

LITTLE, AND RELAPSE SUDDENLY INTO A

BLANK, STARING SILENCE. TONY BEGAN TO

THINK SHE WASN’T QUITE ALL THERE.

“BUT HE WAS A LONG WAY OFF, HE DIDN’T

MATTER TO HER: HE WAS LIKE A PERSON ON

THE OTHER SIDE OF A THICK GLASS WALL.”

“SHE WAS INSIDE A BUBBLE OF FRESH LIGHT AND

COLOUR, OF BRILLIANT SOUND AND BIRD-SONG.

ALL AROUND THE TREES WERE FILLED WITH

SHRILLING BIRDS, THAT SOUNDED HER OWN

HAPPINESS AND CHORUSED IT TO THE SKY.

AS LIGHT AS A BLOWN FEATHER SHE LEFT THE ROOM.”

GRAHAM GREENE – LOSER TAKES ALL

“HIS KINDNESS HAD MEANT NOTHING, A WHIM HAD

FLOWN LIKE A WILD BIRD OVER THE SNOWY WASTE

OF HIS MIND, LEAVING NO TRACK AT ALL.”

“I LIKE BEING SOMEWHERE

WITHOUT FOOTPRINTS.”

“I CARRIED A KNIFE IN MY

MIND AND WAITED TO USE IT.”

Thanks!

Photos made at “Surae” (Oosterhout,

Holland), 8 April 2015.

Update soon!