All the Old Knives Quotes

“Perhaps it’s only those who don’t know us at all who are able to see us most clearly.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“Things happen. The only thing that matters is how we deal with the now. Either we face the difficult moral decisions with ever-stronger responses, or we do not. This is what separates the mensch from the asshole. Full stop.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“It can be because in each man’s life there are only a few women who can turn him inside out, who can cripple him with a smile. These are weaknesses, but they’re also a sign of humanity. Without these flaws, a man doesn’t really live.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“While our expectations for the future are all that really keep us going, the failure of those expectations is the source of all our sadness.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“No. No risk, no failure. And without failure you’re not really human. You’re just skating on the surface of life.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“If the answer’s not in front of you or behind you, remember there are four other directions to look.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“Everything is darkened by the shadow of your love for your child.” I”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“Her hands stretch across the table and squeeze the fingers of my left hand. “I’ve got my bestest lover here, and we’re talking about things that no longer exist for me. It’s like discussing dreams we’ve had.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“An image of an image, which is a perfect place to live if you want to be something other than what you once were.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“Sally is a bully of the worst sort, for she never lays a hand on Bill, never gives her bullying a properly physical manifestation. She beats him with words and body language and selectively brutal silences.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“Eighty percent of an Agency brain is devoted to repercussions and possible futures, even when you’re just thinking about moving in with your boyfriend.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“There’s a delay taking off from San Francisco—caused, I’m guessing, by an overburdened airport, but no one will tell us for sure. At times like this, sitting stalled on the tarmac, it’s easy to think apocalyptically—airports at the bursting point, highways clogged with SUVs helmed by citizens in meltdown, smog alerts and gridlocked emergency rooms, corridors lined with the bleeding. When you’re in California this kind of vision explodes into grandiosity, and you imagine the earth ripping apart, spilling all this overconsumption, all the cell phones and seaside villas and hopeful young starlets noisily into the sea. It almost feels like a blessing.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“Perhaps it's only those who don't know us at all who who are able to see us most clearly. Perhaps strangers are our best friends.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“Or maybe her smile has nothing to do with me, and I’m not really the center of the universe. Unlikely, but possible.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“had to demand everything out of my new surroundings, and I felt like I’d been cheated.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“You can sit there and”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“For once I was satisfied, which is really all anyone can ask for.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives

“been waiting all my life to meet you? Well, it applies to children. First as babies, but particularly once they’ve gotten old enough to have well-defined characters. It’s completely true—you realize that you really have been waiting all your life to meet this person. There’s nothing to compare to it.”
― Olen Steinhauer, All the Old Knives