Book

How to Stop Time

“A quirky romcom dusted with philosophical observations….A delightfully witty…poignant novel.” —The Washington Post “She smiled a soft, troubled smile and I felt the whole world slipping away, and I wanted to slip with i

(7 total)

Characters

Matt Haig (7)

“'I'm sorry,' I say. 'About being a bit odd sometimes, at school.' Camille shakes her head. 'You really have to stop saying that. Incessant apologizing is never an attractive trait.' 'You're right. The thing is, I really am quite bad, you know, with people.' 'Ah, them. People. Yes, it's hard.' 'And I…”

— Matt Haig, amazon.com

Tagged: Apologizing, overapologizing

“That is one of the patterns: when nothing is happening, nothing continues to happen, but after a while the lull becomes too much and the drums need to kick in. Something has to happen. Often that need comes from yourself. You make a phone call. You say, 'I can't do this life anymore, I need to chang…”

— Matt Haig, amazon.com

Tagged: Patterns, lull, Pain, Isaac Newton

“'A cocktail,' she said, 'is a great ally in the war.’ 'Which war is that?' I asked. 'The war against boredom.'”

— Matt Haig, amazon.com

Tagged: cocktail, ally, War, Boredom, Drinking

“Music doesn't get in. Music is already in. Music simply uncovers what is there, makes you feel emotions that you didn't necessarily know you had inside you, and runs around waking them all up. A rebirth of sorts.”

— Matt Haig, amazon.com

Tagged: Music, emotions, Rebirth

“'He smiled softly. 'People you love never die.' I had no idea of the sense of his words, but they stayed with me for centuries.'”

— Matt Haig, amazon.com

Tagged: Love, Immortality

“'My mother was, in the tradition of parents, quite a complicated and contradictory human being. Moralistic but a devout lover of pleasure (food, music, the aesthetics of nature). Deeply religious but seemingly as comforted by singing a secular chanson as by prayer. A lover of the natural world who w…”

— Matt Haig, amazon.com

Tagged: mother, Tradition, moralistic, Pleasure, England

“Maybe Shakespeare was right. Maybe all the world was a stage. Maybe without the act everything would fall apart. The key to happiness wasn't being yourself, because what did that even mean? Everyone had many selves. No. The key to happiness is finding the lie that suits you best.”

— Matt Haig, amazon.com

Tagged: shakespeare, Happiness, Pretense, Mask