Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
by Gregory Maguire

» all souls are hostages to their human envelopes, but souls must decay and suffer at such indignity

» no one knows the color of a soul

» she reasoned that because she was beautiful she was significant

» there [is] something vulgar about traveling in jewels…the overdressed traveler betrays more interest in being seen than in seeing.

» while the *true* traveler knows that the novel world about her serves as the most appropriate accessory.

» like teachers, if ministers are effective, they’re good at asking questions to get you to think. [not necessarily] to have answers.

» someone w/ a real religious conviction is, I propose, a religious *convict*, & deserves locking up

» the family was always bright, & brightness…decays brilliantly. madness is the most shining way.

» at it’s most elemental, a spell is no more than a recipe for change

» a tenderer, complacent mind…the softer, more bruisable aspect, the private intention, the surrendering self

» the word *immoral* [when used by]…the young it is ridiculous, the old it is sententious…the middle-aged it is hypocritical.

» poetry is the highest form of self deception

» I never use the words humanist or humanitarian, as it seems that to be human is to be capable of the most heinous crimes in nature

» is it just that the world unwraps itself to you, again & again, as soon as your are ready to see it anew?

» the benefit of a uniform [is] that one need not struggle to be unique

» as women [wear] cologne, men [wear] proofs: to secure their own sense of themselves, and thus to be attractive

» forgiveness blesses the donor as well as the receiver

» elegant attenuated drawings in blood red & gold leaf, on the elevations of an angel, w/ notes on the aerodynamic aspects of holiness

» those brash, brave days of youthful blunder

» the more civilized we become, the more horrendous our entertainments

» poets are just as responsible for empire building as any other professional hacks

» people who claim they’re evil are usually no worse than the rest of us. it’s people who claim they’re good…that you have to be wary of.

» [is it] immoral to raise children in the habit of hope

» a more ancient precedent of ransom, that we may not always be tormented by our shame

» always the godfather, never the god

» the body apologizer apologizes to the soul for its errors, and the soul asks forgiveness for squatting in the body without invitation

more good stuff:

• my LibraryThing review
• Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West on Wikipedia and Amazon