The Rithmatist (Rithmatist, #1)

by Brandon Sanderson

“The most dangerous kind of man is not the one who spent his youth shoving others around. That kind of man gets lazy, and is often too content with his life to be truly dangerous. The man who spent his youth being shoved around, however … When that man gets a little power and authority, he often uses it to become a tyrant on par with the worst warlords in history. I worry this could become you.”

So much about life was disappointment. He often wondered how humankind endured so long, and if the few moments when things went right really made up for all the rest.