Bruce Coville Quotes

It is a pity that Earth has lost its dragons, for they added immeasurably to the strangeness of our world. This, it seemed to me, was a good thing.

Now that she had lived in two worlds, would she ever again be completely at home in either of them? Or would part of her always long for the other, no matter where she was?

The Kid in the Plain Brown Wrapper If Jennifer Murdley hadn’t been forced to wear her brother’s underpants to school, the whole thing might never have happened. But when she walked into the laundry room on the morning of October 13th, she found her father pouring liquid detergent onto a load of clothes that included every pair of underwear she owned. “Dad!” she screamed. “Wait!” She was too late. The tub was filling, her underwear was soggy and soapy, and there was no chance of getting any of it dry before she had to leave for school. “Don’t worry,” said Mr. Murdley, holding up a stack of neatly folded underpants, “you can wear a pair of these!” “You have got to be kidding! Those belong to Skippy!” The conversation that followed wasn’t pretty. The bottom line had been that Jennifer was going to school, and she was going to wear underwear, even if it did belong to her brother.

For what kind of world is it that has no unicorns?

Odds of a worm migration coming this way — about a billion to one. Odds of Elspeth improving her behavior without help — about the same. Sleep well, young friends.

I looked far and wide
For a heart to stay true,
I found it at last
When at last I found you.

Though I may wander
In paths far from you
I'll always return
To the heart that stays true.

But it's often the case that our most intimate enemies are rooted in our own darkness.

You need them both, Thatcher. Talent and discipline. One without the other is useless.

It is easy enough to reject a story because you do not like what it says, but wiser to examine it first, to see what can be learned from it.

"I stopped talking and stared into the distance. "Hold on," I whispered. "I think I'm about to be brilliant."
-Nina Tanleven, The Ghost Wore Gray"

In every separation lie the seeds of reunion, in every reunion the seeds of separation.

You earthlings! You never know what you want. If you'd stop trying to hold on to everything, you'd be a lot happier.

Chains...They bind us, whether we want them to or not. But a heart without chains would have nothing to hold it, might simply blow away.

They are stupid and dangerous, and all the more dangerous because they are stupid.

When the King is mad, it is an honor to be an exile.