65 Quotes & Sayings By Lloyd Alexander

A shade of sorrow passed over Taliesin's face. 'There are those, ' he said gently, 'who must first learn loss, despair, and grief. Of all paths to wisdom, this is the cruelest and longest. Are you one who must follow such a way? This even I cannot know. If you are, take heart nonetheless. Those who reach the end do more than gain wisdom. As rough wool becomes cloth, and crude clay a vessel, so do they change and fashion wisdom for others, and what they give back is greater than what they won. . Lloyd Alexander

He learned that the lives of men are short and filled with pain, yet each one a priceless treasure, whether it be that of a prince or a pig-keeper. And, at the last, the book taught him that while nothing was certain, all was possible. "At the end of knowledge, wisdom begins, Dallben murmured. "And at the end of wisdom there is not grief, but hope. Lloyd Alexander

Torrens kicked at the door until it was finally opened. The farm couple and three youngsters had been eating breakfast in the common room. The yard dog would have bounded in had not Torrens kicked the door shut.' I want a bed. Quilts. A hot drink. I am a doctor. This woman is my patient.' The farm couple was terrified. The look on the face of Torrens cut short any questions. They did as he ordered. One of the children ran to fetch his medical kit from the cart. The woman motioned for Torrens to set Caroline on a straw pallet. The farmer kept his distance, but his wife, shyly, fearffully, ventured closer. She glanced at Torrens, as if requesting his permission to help. Between them, they made Caroline as comfortable as they could. Torrens knelt by the pallet. Caroline reached for his hand. 'Leave while you can. Do not burden yourself with me.'' A light burden.'' I wish you to find Augusta.''You have my promise.'' Take this.' Caroline had slipped off a gold ring set with diamonds. 'It was a wedding gift from the king. It has not left my finger since then. I give it to you now - ' Torrens protested, but Caroline went on - 'not as a keepsake. You and I have better keepsakes in our hearts. I wish you to sell it. You will need money, perhaps even more than this will bring. But you must stary alive and find my child. Help her as you have always helped me.'' We shall talk of this later, when you are better. We shall find her together.'' You have never lied to me.' Caroline's smile was suddenly flirtacious. 'Sir, if you begin now, I shall take you to task for it.' Her face seemed to grow youthful and earnest for an instant. Torrens realized she held life only by strength of will.' I am thinking of the Juliana gardens, ' Caroline said. 'How lovely they were. The orangerie. And you, my loving friend. Tell me, could we have been happy?'' Yes.' Torrens raised her hand to his lips. 'Yes. I am certain of it.' Caroline did not speak again. Torrens stayed at her side. She died later that morning. Torrens buried her in the shelter of a hedgerow at the far edge of the field. The farmer offered to help, but Torrens refused and dug the grave himself. Later, in the farmhouse, he slept heavily for the first time since his escape. Mercifully, he did not dream. Next day, he gave the farmer his clothing in trade for peasant garb. He hitched up the cart and drove back to the road. He could have pressed on, lost himself beyond search in the provinces. He was free. Except for his promise. He turned the cart toward Marianstat. Lloyd Alexander

He will not succeed in this, " Taran said. "Somehow, we must find a way to escape. We dare not lose hope." "I agree absolutely, " Fflewddur answered. "Your general idea is excellent; it's only the details that are lacking... Lloyd Alexander

...Writings can be stolen, or changed, or used for evil purposes. But isn't the risk worth taking? The more people who share knowledge, the greater safeguard for it. Isn't there more danger in ignorance than knowledge? Lloyd Alexander

I think imagination is at the heart of everything we do. Scientific discoveries couldn't have happened without imagination. Art, music, and literature couldn't exist without imagination. And so anything that strengthens imagination, and reading certainly does that, can help us for the rest of our lives. Lloyd Alexander

Keep reading. It's one of the most marvelous adventures that anyone can have. Lloyd Alexander

We don't need to have just one favorite. We keep adding favorites. Our favorite book is always the book that speaks most directly to us at a particular stage in our lives. And our lives change. We have other favorites that give us what we most need at that particular time. But we never lose the old favorites. They're always with us. We just sort of accumulate them. Lloyd Alexander

And so shall honor Morgant, " Gwydion said, "for what he used to be, and Ellidyr Prince of Pen-Llarcau for what he became. Lloyd Alexander

I can't imagine why knowledge, truth and love should be so much of a secret Lloyd Alexander

It is strange, ' he said at last. 'I had longed to enter the world of men. Now I see it filled with sorrow, with cruelty and treachery, with those who would destroy all around them.' 'Yet, enter it you must, ' Gwydion answered, 'for it is a destiny laid on each of us. True, you have seen these things. But there are equal parts of love and joy. Lloyd Alexander

Children may not understand all that's happening below the surface of a story. It doesn't matter. Because even though they may not be able to define or verbalize it, they sense there's something more than meets the eye; on an almost subliminal level, they're aware of a richness of texture, or meaning and emotion -- a richness that, in a great book, is inexhaustible. And the child may well come back to it again and again, perhaps long after he's stopped being a child. . Lloyd Alexander

The vitality of art is its capacity for infinite expansion. One form doesn't preclude another any more than the existence of Mozart makes the existence of Bach superfluous. Lloyd Alexander

If you want truth, you should begin by giving it. Lloyd Alexander

I only suggest to you: Will you dwell on killing this man? You wish for revenge? If you do, he has already killed you by slow poison. So, let it go. Why waste your time? His life will see to his death. Lloyd Alexander

When imagination fails, compassion and humaneness dwindle and atrophy along with it. Unleavened by imagination, the variety and richness of life turn into flat abstractions; people become objects to be manipulated -- with the social consequences we know all too well. Lloyd Alexander

I can't make sense out of that girl, " he said to the bard, "Can you?" "Never mind, " Fflewddur said, "We aren't really expected to. Lloyd Alexander

Two things never mix: one is enchantments and the other is meddling with them. Lloyd Alexander

No, no, " said Taran slowly, "It would be folly to think of attacking them." He smiled quickly at Fflewddur. "The bards would sing of us, " he admitted, "but we'd be in no position to appreciate it. Lloyd Alexander

All that writers can do is keep trying to say what is deepest in their hearts. Lloyd Alexander

Is there not glory enough in living the days given to us? You should know there is adventure in simply being among those we love and the things we love, and beauty too. Lloyd Alexander

The dear girl, I fear, may be contemplating some alarming, disruptive perhaps dangerous project. In which case, I would naturally do all in my power to keep her from any such rash or foolhardy enterprise — unless she wished me to accompany her. Lloyd Alexander

A taste for adventure is by no means a masculine monopoly. Lloyd Alexander

What you may seek and what you may find are not always one. Lloyd Alexander

It is true. Indeed, that is why I dared not speak. I have yearned to be again at the side of my beloved Arianllyn, and my thoughts are with her now. But had I chosen to return, I would ever wonder whether my choice was made through wisdom or following the wishes of my own heart. I see this is as it must be, and the destiny laid upon me. I am content to die here. Lloyd Alexander

Is there worse evil than that which goes in the mask of good? Lloyd Alexander

Thus, death begets death; evil begets evil. Lloyd Alexander

Count the deed, not the thought. Lloyd Alexander

For man to be worthy of any rank, he must strive first to be a man. Lloyd Alexander

Is a man truly what he see himself to be?'' Only if what he sees is true. Lloyd Alexander

Thinking is a bit uncomfortable, but you'll get used to it. A matter of time and practice. Lloyd Alexander

I shall not lie! " Eilonwy cried, "not for this traitor and deserter." "It is not for him, " Taran said quietly, "but for the sake of our quest." "It isn't right, " Eilonwy began, tears starting in her eyes. "We do not speak of rightness, " Taran answered. "We speak of a task to be finished. Lloyd Alexander

Who but lovers dream alike? Lloyd Alexander

Miss Vesper Holly has the digestive talents of a goat and the mind of a chess master. She is familiar with half a dozen languages and can swear fluently in all of them. She understands the use of a slide rule but prefers doing calculations in her head. She does not hesitate to risk life and limb- mine as well as her own. No doubt she has other qualities as yet undiscovered. I hope not. Lloyd Alexander

The journey is the treasure. Lloyd Alexander

You must know nothing before you can learn something, and be empty before you can be filled. Is not the emptiness of the bowl what makes it useful? As for laws, a parrot can repeat them word for word. Their spirit is something else again. As for governing, one must first be lowest before being highest. Lloyd Alexander

Surely you can entrust your task to your friends." "No, " said Taran, after a long pause, "I have taken it on myself through my own choice."" If that is so, " answered Medwyn, "then you can give it up through your own choice. Lloyd Alexander

Every living thing deserves our respect... be it humble or proud, ugly or beautiful. Lloyd Alexander

No matter what has happened, you're not a pig-boy; you're an Assistant Pig Keeper! Lloyd Alexander

The art is more important than the artist. The work is more important than the person who does it. You must be prepared to sacrifice all the you could possibly have, be, or do; you must be willing to go all the way for your art. If it is a question between choosing between your life and a work of art -- any work of art -- your decision is made for you. Lloyd Alexander

That is why your sacrifice was all the more difficult. You chose to be a hero not through enchantment but through your own manhood. Lloyd Alexander

Any fool can tell a story. Take a few odds and ends of things that happen to you, dress them up, shuffle them about, add a dash of excitement, a little color, and there you have it. Lloyd Alexander

If a storyteller worried about the facts - my dear Lucian, how could he ever get at the truth? Lloyd Alexander

Do you not believe that animals know grief and fear and pain? The world of men is not an easy one for them. Lloyd Alexander

The only thing a cat worries about is what's happening right now. As we tell the kittens, you can only wash one paw at a time. Lloyd Alexander

I, too, shall seek honor. But I shall seek it where I know it will be found. Lloyd Alexander

Keep out of this, " Lucian said. "I'm not smiting anybody."" You're showing mercy." Catch-a-Tick nodded. "That's heroic, too. But not as good as smiting. Lloyd Alexander

The ocean filled the footprints where a boy and cat had stood. Lloyd Alexander

But, alas, in most of us good and bad are closely woven as the threads on a loom; greater wisdom than mine is needed for the judging. Lloyd Alexander

Every man is a hero if he strives more for others than for himself alone. Lloyd Alexander

Trust your luck, Taran Wanderer. But don't forget to put out your nets! Lloyd Alexander

My luck's no greater than yours or any man's. You need only sharpen your eyes to see your luck when it comes, and sharpen your wits to use what falls into your hands. Lloyd Alexander

Until the thirst for power parched his throat, he was a fearless and noble lord. Lloyd Alexander

Gwydion stood as a wolf at bay, his green eyes glittering, his teeth bared. Lloyd Alexander

I saw myself.. In the time I watched, I saw strength–and frailty. Pride and vanity, courage and fear. Of wisdom, a little. Of folly, much. Of intentions, many good ones; but many more left undone. In this, alas, I saw myself a man like any other. But this, too, I saw.. Alike as men may seem, each is different as flakes of snow, no two the same. You told me you had no need to seek the Mirror, knowing you were Annlaw Clay-Shaper. Now I know who I am: myself and none other. I am Taran. Lloyd Alexander

We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself. Lloyd Alexander