Ilse’s Reviews > Berta Isla > Status Update

Ilse
Ilse is on page 52 of 576
Those were the days of the so-called sexual liberation,which was permeated by the idea that there was barely any difference between having sex with someone and having a cup of coffee with them,as they were equivalent activities, &as if neither should leave behind any trace or sense of unease.(Even if no memory remains,the event does at least leave a trace, perhaps only in our knowledge &awareness that it did occur)
Apr 18, 2026 04:41AM
Berta Isla

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Ilse
Ilse is on page 289 of 576
All ages feel that their conflicts are equally serious, a matter of life and death. They consider that their circumstances justify extreme measures. Every age believes itself to be exposed to great dangers , and every age is prepared o break its own established rules and regulations , to feel constrained by its own restrictions and to find ways of ignoring them or getting round them .
May 01, 2026 10:32AM
Berta Isla


Ilse
Ilse is on page 263 of 576
That night I genuinely didn’t know what to do, but I did, of course, stay with Tomas. You would need to have lost an awful lot before you’d be willing to renounce what you have. You curb your impetuous urges , your expectations , you accept the somewhat tarnished version of what you were hoping to achieve or thought you had achieved , and besides, there are disappointments and imperfections at all stages of life .
Apr 29, 2026 07:44AM
Berta Isla


Ilse
Ilse is on page 164 of 576
As all we know, imagination is often far wilder than reality, even if it lacks the latter's precision and terrible force, so you can always dismiss what it tells you and say to yourself: 'That might well not have happened, and since I have no idea what really happened, nor ever will, why torment myself with conjectures?’
Apr 27, 2026 06:22AM
Berta Isla


Ilse
Ilse is on page 72 of 576
Peace,alas,is only ever apparent and transitory,a pretense.War is the natural state of the world.Often it’s open warfare,but when it’s not,war is always there in latent or indirect form or is merely a war-in-waiting.There are large portions of humanity who are always trying to harm others,or to take something from them,and rancour and discord reign at all times, if not, then they’re in the wings, watching and waiting
Apr 20, 2026 08:25AM
Berta Isla


Ilse
Ilse is on page 10 of 576
When she believed that her husband was her husband, she felt less at ease and found it harder to get out of bed and begin the day, she felt a prisoner of what she had so long been waiting for and which had now happened and for which she no longer waited, because anyone who has grown used to waiting never entirely consents to that waiting coming to a close, it’s like having half the air you breathe snatched from you.
Apr 16, 2026 02:07AM
Berta Isla


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message 1: by Jan-Maat (new)

Jan-Maat But what kind kind of coffee? An espresso, a latte, instant with two sugars?


message 2: by Ilse (new) - added it

Ilse Jan-Maat wrote: "But what kind kind of coffee? An espresso, a latte, instant with two sugars?"
In the days referred to in the novel, I imagine, the kind of coffee mattered less than the company, but ask your question now and you'll end up digging into Spanish coffee culture for hours :D! Café Suizo, Café con hielo, Café bombón, Café Cortado...and I thought Italian coffees already complex!


message 3: by Jan-Maat (new)

Jan-Maat Ilse wrote: "Jan-Maat wrote: "But what kind kind of coffee? An espresso, a latte, instant with two sugars?"
In the days referred to in the novel, I imagine, the kind of coffee mattered less than the company, bu..."


Maybe if those days were in Spain or in Oxford makes a difference too?


message 4: by Ilse (new) - added it

Ilse Jan-Maat wrote: Maybe if those days were in Spain or in Oxford makes a difference too?
Maybe the analogy indeed makes more sense in Spain than in Oxford (perhaps tea making a similar comparison more probable?)


message 5: by Jan-Maat (new)

Jan-Maat Ilse wrote: "Jan-Maat wrote: Maybe if those days were in Spain or in Oxford makes a difference too?
Maybe the analogy indeed makes more sense in Spain than in Oxford (perhaps tea making a similar comparison mor..."


Ah, tea!

Well that does change the flavour of the sentance!


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