Wisdom from Words - Volume II

Books, books, books! I love books and in the spirit of that, I continue my series on some of my favorite quotes from yet another author that whose work I enjoy - the one and only George R.R. Martin, the author of the books series A Song of Ice and Fire; the book series that the show Game of Thrones is based on. 

Oh George - maybe stop killing people, okay?

And yes, I'm going there - another post related to Game of Thrones in one week. Is it really surprising? It shouldn't be because in case you've not gleaned from multiple other posts, I'm kind of a wee bit in love with all things Game of Thrones. I digress though; while George R.R. Martin may not be the cutest person, he certainly has a way with words and I devour them. So, feel free to take a look at the top ten quotes from George R.R. Martin's works that I've listed below (okay; it's kind of a cheat because the first nine are from books but the final one is from Martin himself; granted I guess they're all ten from Martin himself, just in different context).

The Houses from Game of Thrones

Top Ten Words of Wisdom from Martin

1) “A mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone."
 - Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

2) “Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.” 
 - Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

3) “What is honor compared to a woman's love? What is duty against the feel of a newborn son in your arms . . . or the memory of a brother's smile? Wind and words. Wind and words. We are only human, and the gods have fashioned us for love. That is our great glory, and our great tragedy.” 
 - Aemon Targaryen, A Game of Thrones

4) “When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground."
 - Cersei Lannister, A Game of Thrones

5) “As we sin, so do we suffer”
 - Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

6) “We only make peace with our enemies. That's why it's called making peace.” 
 - Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish, A Clash of Kings

7) “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies, The man who never reads lives only one.” 
 - Jojen Reed, A Clash of Kings

8) “Some old wounds never truly heal, and bleed again at the slightest word.” 
 - Eddard Stark, A Game of Thrones

9) “He who hurries through life hurries to his grave.” 
 - Salladhor Saan, A Storm of Swords

And last but not least...a quote from Martin himself that I think just so perfectly illuminates why fantasy is truly such a wonderful thing. I couldn't agree more with what he says here, it's delightful!

10) “The best fantasy is written in the language of dreams. It is alive as dreams are alive, more real than real ... for a moment at least ... that long magic moment before we wake.

Fantasy is silver and scarlet, indigo and azure, obsidian veined with gold and lapis lazuli. Reality is plywood and plastic, done up in mud brown and olive drab. Fantasy tastes of habaneros and honey, cinnamon and cloves, rare red meat and wines as sweet as summer. Reality is beans and tofu, and ashes at the end. Reality is the strip malls of Burbank, the smokestacks of Cleveland, a parking garage in Newark. Fantasy is the towers of Minas Tirith, the ancient stones of Gormenghast, the halls of Camelot. Fantasy flies on the wings of Icarus, reality on Southwest Airlines. Why do our dreams become so much smaller when they finally come true?

We read fantasy to find the colors again, I think. To taste strong spices and hear the songs the sirens sang. There is something old and true in fantasy that speaks to something deep within us, to the child who dreamt that one day he would hunt the forests of the night, and feast beneath the hollow hills, and find a love to last forever somewhere south of Oz and north of Shangri-La.

They can keep their heaven. When I die, I'd sooner go to middle Earth.” 
 - George R.R. Martin

Once more - some of the houses from Game of Thrones.