Great lines from classic books

Fans of the classics will love this collection curated by the Viewtale review team.

They were women who idolized their children, worshiped their husbands, and esteemed it a holy privilege to efface themselves as individuals and grow wings as ministering angels. – Kate Chopin, The Awakening

I don’t exactly know what I mean by that, but I mean it. – J. D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye

It was curious to think that the sky was the same for everybody, in Eurasia or Eastasia as well as here. And the people under the sky were also very much the same—everywhere, all over the world, hundreds or thousands of millions of people just like this, people ignorant of one another’s existence, held apart by walls of hatred and lies, and yet almost exactly the same—people who had never learned to think but who were storing up in their hearts and bellies and muscles the power that would one day overturn the world. – George Orwell, 1984

Ever’body’s askin’ that. “What we comin’ to?” Seems to me we don’t never come to nothin’. Always on the way. – John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath

The Mole was a good listener, and Toad, with no one to check his statements or to criticize in an unfriendly spirit, rather let himself go. Indeed, much that he related belonged more properly to the category of what-might-have-happened-had-I-only-thought-of-it-in-time-instead-of-ten-minutes-afterwards. – Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. – J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

Like so many Americans, she was trying to construct a life that made sense from things she found in gift shops. – Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five

Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful. – Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

And they beat. The women for having known them and no more, no more; the children for having been them but never again. They killed a boss so often and so completely they had to bring him back to life to pulp him one more time. Tasting hot mealcake among pine trees, they beat it away. Singing love songs to Mr. Death, they smashed his head. More than the rest, they killed the flirt whom folks called Life for leading them on. – Toni Morrison, Beloved

I saw within Its depth how It conceives All things in a single volume bound by Love of which the universe is the scattered leaves. Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy

And again she felt alone in the presence of her old antagonist, life. – Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse

It was like knocking four quick times on the door of unhappiness. – Albert Camus, The Stranger

A certain pride, a certain awe, withheld him from offering to God even one prayer at night, though he knew it was in God’s power to take away his life while he slept and hurl his soul hellward ere he could beg for mercy. – James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

Laugh as much as you choose, but you will not laugh me out of my opinion. – Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

I ask you to pass through life at my side—to be my second self, and best earthly companion. – Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

It is an essential part of the justice dispensed here that you should be condemned not only in innocence but also in ignorance. – Franz Kafka, The Trial

The world wavered and quivered and threatened to burst into flames. – Virginia Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway

Who then may trust the dice, at Fortune’s throw? – Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales

If you love reading the classics, why not jump over to Viewtale and take a read through all the great eBooks and podcasts on offer?

Great lines from the greatest classics

If you enjoy the classics then you will enjoy these lines from some of the best books ever written.

It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door.

J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

Like so many Americans, she was trying to construct a life that made sense from things she found in gift shops.

Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five

Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful.

Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

And they beat. The women for having known them and no more, no more; the children for having been them but never again. They killed a boss so often and so completely they had to bring him back to life to pulp him one more time. Tasting hot mealcake among pine trees, they beat it away. Singing love songs to Mr. Death, they smashed his head. More than the rest, they killed the flirt whom folks called Life for leading them on.

Toni Morrison, Beloved

I saw within Its depth how It conceives All things in a single volume bound by Love of which the universe is the scattered leaves.

Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy

And again she felt alone in the presence of her old antagonist, life.

Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse

It was like knocking four quick times on the door of unhappiness.

Albert Camus, The Stranger

A certain pride, a certain awe, withheld him from offering to God even one prayer at night, though he knew it was in God’s power to take away his life while he slept and hurl his soul hellward ere he could beg for mercy.

James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

Laugh as much as you choose, but you will not laugh me out of my opinion.

Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

I ask you to pass through life at my side—to be my second self, and best earthly companion.

Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

It is an essential part of the justice dispensed here that you should be condemned not only in innocence but also in ignorance.

Franz Kafka, The Trial

The world wavered and quivered and threatened to burst into flames.

Virginia Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway

For more of the classics, check out www.viewtale.com.

The best classic movie quotes

Perhaps you know some, perhaps you don’t, but here are some of the very best classic movie quotes you need to read now.

“I wish I knew how to quit you, Tumblr.” ~ John Green

“Don’t forget I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her.” ~ Julia Roberts

“Don’t let’s ask for the moon. We have the stars.” ~ Casey Robinson

“Carpe diem. (Seize the day.)” ~ Horace

“Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.” ~ Clark Gable

“For the taxable investor, indexing means never having to say you’re sorry.” ~ William J. Bernstein

“Mrs. Robinson, you’re trying to seduce me… aren’t you?” ~ Dustin Hoffman

“Greed, for lack of a better word, is good.” ~ Michael Douglas

“Gentlemen, you can’t fight in here! This is the War Room.” ~ Peter Sellers

“Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works.” ~ Oliver Stone

“Vasectomy means never having to say you’re sorry.” ~ Larry Adler

“A boy’s best friend is his mother.” ~ Joseph Stefano

“You can’t handle the truth!” ~ Jack Nicholson

“My momma always said, “Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”” ~ Winston Groom

For more of the classics, check out www.viewtale.com.

Inspiring Lessons from the Pages of Classic Novels

Sure, the classics were written to entertain, but more often than not they were also written to teach, and within the pages of each classic novel lies lessons to be taken to heart. Here are three inspiring lessons from classic novels, and the quotes which brought them to light.

From The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas:

“It’s never too late to turn your life in a completely new direction, and there is huge importance in just one day.”

What beauty there is to be found in the idea of impermanence! You can change, your circumstances can change, life itself can change, and it’s never too late to turn things around.

From The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde:

“Let go of your past, but don’t pretend that it never happened.”

Keeping with the theme of change, becoming someone new doesn’t mean forgetting who you were. Your past is in the past, but it’s important to know your history.

From the A Series of Unfortunate Events series by Lemony Snicket:

“Being lonely is OK, and not everyone has to like you. You can’t always rely on people.”

It’s a tough lesson to learn, but at one point or another everyone needs to learn self reliance, as there’s no guarantee to always find someone else who can help. This doesn’t mean we can’t rely on other people on occasion, it just means we all need to be able to take care of ourselves as well.

Looking to catch up on the classics? Visit our online library at www.viewtale.com for a wide variety of ebooks, audiobooks, music, and more. Accessible anytime, anywhere, from your favorite devices.

Inspiring Lessons from the Pages of Classic Novels

Sure, the classics were written to entertain, but more often than not they were also written to teach, and within the pages of each classic novel lies lessons to be taken to heart. Here are three inspiring lessons from classic novels, and the quotes which brought them to light.

From The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas:

“It’s never too late to turn your life in a completely new direction, and there is huge importance in just one day.”

What beauty there is to be found in the idea of impermanence! You can change, your circumstances can change, life itself can change, and it’s never too late to turn things around.

From The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde:

“Let go of your past, but don’t pretend that it never happened.”

Keeping with the theme of change, becoming someone new doesn’t mean forgetting who you were. Your past is in the past, but it’s important to know your history.

From the A Series of Unfortunate Events series by Lemony Snicket:

“Being lonely is OK, and not everyone has to like you. You can’t always rely on people.”

It’s a tough lesson to learn, but at one point or another everyone needs to learn self reliance, as there’s no guarantee to always find someone else who can help. This doesn’t mean we can’t rely on other people on occasion, it just means we all need to be able to take care of ourselves as well.

Looking to catch up on the classics? Visit our online library at www.viewtale.com for a wide variety of ebooks, audiobooks, music, and more. Accessible anytime, anywhere, from your favorite devices.

How to Start Reading the Classics

The world of classic literature can seem like an intimidating one at times. Countless titles, each as timeless as the last, and each every bit as worth the effort to read as the next. It may be difficult to decide where to begin, but fear not! Here are four easy steps to help you start reading the classics today.

Writing with quill pen

Figure out what you already like. Odds are you’ve already got some topics of interest, or perhaps even a writing style you enjoy, which means you can begin with the classics that you may be more inclined to like.

Make a list. Once you’ve defined what you’d like to read, go ahead and make a list of the novels that fit the bill. You may find that the quantity of classics on your list will be less intimidating than you think.

Make time to read. Now that you’ve got the first book on your list, it’s important to actually make time to read it. Make it a ritual, one you enjoy, and you’ll find yourself trying to get more sessions scheduled in before you know it.

Young woman writer in library at home creative occupation sitting writing notes

Don’t be afraid to move on. Not every book will be for you, and that’s ok. If one of the classics just isn’t doing it for you, there’s no shame in putting it down and moving on to the next. You can always come back to it later.

Looking to get acquainted with the classics? Visit our online library at www.viewtale.com for a wide variety of ebooks, audiobooks, music, and more, accessible anytime from your favorite devices.