79 Quotes by A.M. Homes

The subjects range from the pastoral (sniffing of the butt of a melon to tell if it's ripe. and almost romantically lush descriptions of lightening storms sweeping across fields on summer nights) to elaborations on the value of man's having a life of his own, apart from whatever life he has with his family, a private life that no one knows anything about, "a place he can be himself without concern of disappointment or rejection".

Suffering is normal. Pain is normal, it is part of life... What is its texture, the weight of our suffering? What is its meaning? Begin by touching it, by coming close to it, accepting it: Hello, suffering, I am here with you. I am beside you, one with you, I am you. I am suffering.

Was this the big one or was this the small tremor, the warning? Does it get better - does the sensation of being in a dream underwater go away?

If you don’t write the book you have to write, everything breaks.

He laid there realizing how thoroughly he'd removed himself from the world or obligations, how stupidly independent he'd become: he needed no one, knew no one, was not a part of anyone's life. He'd so thoroughly removed himself from the world of dependencies and obligations, he wasn't sure he still existed.

Books tell you more about their owners than the owners do.

If you are ever in a praying situation with Him: Be Specific! Include certain clauses. It’s not enough to assume that if a person lives they’ll be okay… Cause God has a wicked sense of humor. And even though he knows you mean more, he’ll only give you exactly what you ask for.

If Kennedy hadn't been shot we would never have had LBJ, and without Johnson, Nixon wouldn't have happened. I am fascinated by the swerves, the chances, but also the inevitability. You look at the line of presidents, America does get what reflects it--it becomes self-explanatory.

I firmly believe that there are things we already know and spend a lot of time resisting. You can try, but the amount of energy you spent trying not to know what you already know will be exhausting.