The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino Quotes

“People have the right to fall in love, but not the right to be loved.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino

“Of course, everyone has a touch of madness in them. In fact, there’s something frightening about a person who isn’t a little crazy.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino

“He had underestimated me. All along. Even though I had not underestimated him. But, how do you love someone without blinding yourself? Don’t we all have to indulge each other, let our guard down, and -ever so slightly- lower ourselves, in order to love someone?”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino

“Not once did he ever bring up anything of consequence. Then again, there aren't many things in this world that are really of any consequence. Perhaps there are none at all.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino

“We're too old for falling in love with the idea of love. When you're a grown-up, love means being attracted to someone and wanting to be near them, reading and decoding the signs and scents the other gives off, communicating with someone, and sounding out how the other feels. That's what I would've told you, with a laugh. But you won't hear me laughing anymore. Foolish love. Love that makes you go numb, that paralyzes you, that doubles you over like a wounded animal.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino

“I really just couldn’t think of anything. Absolutely nothing that I wanted to do. There were plenty of things that I don’t want to do. Like torment animals. Or be jealous of other people’s happiness. Or cut my hair short. Or obey unreasonable orders. Or wear pastel-coloured dresses.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino

“I could imagine Toko's life story - she would fall perfectly in love with a guy, marry him, have children, then they would have her grandchildren and eventually she would die peacefully, surrounded by those children and grandchildren. My life story would probably play out quite a bit differently. The man I loved and children too might very well appear at some point, but their arrival would perhaps be strange and unexpected, and then again, they might never materialize at all.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino

“We were anxious. We were light. We had been rapturously happy. We had been in despair. We had been on the verge of loving one another. But, incapable of doing so, we found ourselves on the precipice, doomed to remain there forever.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino

“You know, I have the feeling that I’ll die at the end of summer,” Nishino said, looking up. “Then I’ll have to show you the kingdom before then.” “Well, then I’ll live a long life, and wait for you to toughen up.” “Think I ever will?” “I doubt it. You’ll always be like a little animal, after all, Rei.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Nishino

“I was filled with intense regret, wondering why I had let Yukihiko go. And yet, I knew that it was wrong to think about it in terms of letting him go or being the one to end things. It was simply over. Everything was.”
― Hiromi Kawakami, The Ten Loves of Mr. Nishino