The Year of the Hare Quotes

“Sometimes conceiving an affection for an animal is easier than for a human.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“Anyone could live this life, he reflected, provided they had the sense to give up the other way of life.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“It is hard to teach an old dog to sit, as well as it is difficult to teach an old Laplandian rafter to swim.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“When, that evening, Vatanen slowly ski’d back from Vittumainen Ghyll to Laahkima Gorge, accompanied by his hare, he no longer thought about Kaartinen’s strange world. There was a half-moon, and the stars were glimmering faintly in the frozen evening. He had his own world, this one, and it was fine to be here, living alone in one’s own way. The hare ambled silently along the trail ahead of the skier, like a pathfinder. Vatanen sang to it.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“She began to cry. “Cry quicker, or the call’ll get too expensive.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare: A Novel

“Sometimes life is truly woeful.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“Loving animals can be a heavy load”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“He had his own world, this one, and it was fine to be here, living alone, in his own way.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“He had his own world, this one, and it was fine to be here, living alone, in his own way. The hare ambled silently along the trail ahead of the skier, like a pathfinder. Vatanen sang to it.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare: A Novel

“The work was heavy, but Vatanen liked that. He knew he was getting stronger, and he wasn’t weighed down by the thought of having to do this work till the end of his life.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare: A Novel

“Døra ble åpnet av en kvinne med unnselig utseende, og hun så litt forbauset ut da hun fikk se sin mann og en fremmed stå der med armene fulle av duftende planter. – Helvi, disse plantene tilhører denne mannen, og vi skal ha dem i klesskapet inntil han trenger dem.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“En vår var Vatanens kone blitt gravid, men hadde straks tatt abort. Hun hadde hevdet at en barneseng ikke ville ha gjort seg blant de øvrige møblene, men den mest sannsynlige årsaken hadde gått opp for Vatanen først etter aborten: Det var ikke Vatanens barn.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare

“The hare was following the interchange; it appeared to nod during Vatanen’s words.”
― Arto Paasilinna, The Year of the Hare: A Novel