Top Ten Tuesday (TTT) brought to you by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Inspiring Quotes from Books

Anything that inspires you, challenges you, makes you think, encourages you, etc.

I’m absolutely terrible with book quotes. Terrible. I read something I like, and think I should remember this. And then it’s gone. I’m trying to get better. I promise. I have a thing, though. I don’t like marking up my books. I just don’t. Ebooks are nice in that regard, I don’t feel bad putting a fake highlight in them. And Goodreads is awesome, because you can see (and even add!) quotes for specific books.

1. Here is my all-time favorite book quote. From Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

You think the dead we loved truly ever leave us? You think that we don’t recall them more clearly in times of great trouble?

2. I love Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest. So many great lines in that play.

The truth is rarely pure, and never simple.

3. I just finished The Last Bookaneer, and the beginning has had some beautiful quotes about books. (Please note that this is from an Advanced Review Copy and could change in the final printing.)

Imagine! It is the real power of a book – not what is on the page, but what happens when a reader takes the pages in, makes it part of himself. That is the definition of literature.

4. Not a huge Lord of the Rings fan, but thanks to Sir Ian McKellen, this line from The Fellowship stays with me.

All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.

5. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen – the movie was excellent and felt very uplifting. The book, a bit of a downer in the end. But I still love this quote.

I believe in it because it is impossible.

6. While this quote is not inspirational, it makes me laugh. Every time. This is from Dog On It, a mystery series told from the perspective of Chet the dog, partner of Bernie, private detective.

The cat saw me at once, of course, and every hair on his body stood straight up, and he made a sound like the mountain lion’s roar but much tinier. That’s all cats are – midget lions. I’m nobody’s midget, baby.

7. I think Stephen King has some great quotes on life in general. 11/22/63 is full of them, and tough to pick just one.

Coincidences happen, but I’ve come to believe they are actually quite rare. Something is at work, okay? Somewhere in the universe (or behind it), a great machine is ticking and turning its fabulous gears.

8. Here’s one from Joyland. This is actually one I haven’t read yet, it’s on my list. I came across it when my Dad passed away a few months ago (he was a huge Stephen King fan), and it just spoke to me. (Fun sidenote: I told my husband about this quote and now he’s reading Joyland. We usually don’t read the same types of books.)

All I can say is what you already know: some days are treasure. Not many, but I think in almost every life there are a few. That was one of mine, and when I’m blue — when life comes down on me and everything looks tawdry and cheap, the way Joyland Avenue did on a rainy day — I go back to it, if only to remind myself that life isn’t always a butcher’s game. Sometimes the prizes are real. Sometimes they are precious.

9. The Outsmarting of Criminals: A Mystery Introducing Miss Felicity Prim – This was a fun mystery to read about a woman who loves mystery books.

Books have tremendous worth, and we must not do anything to make them seem less valuable.

10. Landline had a lot of great quotes too. This one has actually been a personal philosophy of mine for many years.

You never know when it’s going to be the last time you see somebody and don’t want to miss your chance to say good-bye.

What are book quotes that stick with you? Feel free to comment or link to your own TTT post.