105 quotes
“Don’t believe everything you hear,” said the Mouse.
Ryan laughed again. “If I believed half of what I heard, I’d be dead and buried already.”
Soothsayer (1991)
“You never did tell me why you became a bounty hunter.”
“I’d been a terrorist for twelve years. The only thing I knew how to do really well was kill people.”
Santiago: a Myth of the Far Future (1986)
“He talked to me about my place in the organization.”
“And?”
“As long as I ask his permission every time I feel like inhaling or exhaling, I'm sure we'll get along just fine.”
Eros at Nadir (1986)
“Don’t worry,” said Monk. “It’ll be a cakewalk.”
“Cakes don’t walk, Jupiter,” said Flint. “They fall.”
The Wild Alien Tamer (1983)
It was an art form, and you don’t learn to be an artist. You’re either born one, or you aren’t.
Sideshow (1982)
“You're almost an hour late!” continued Murray Carnegie harshly.
“I’d prefer to think that everyone else was an hour early,” said Page.
Eros at Nadir (1986)
“You sound like a pessimist, Yank,” said Roosevelt.
“Pessimism and realism are next-door neighbors on this continent, Teddy,” said Rogers.
Bully! (1990)
“I don’t like ultimatums,” said the Black Pearl.
“Then you shouldn’t force me to deliver them.”
Eros at Zenith (1984)
“That sounds very cynical,” I noted…
“You say it’s cynical, I say it’s practical. Either way, it’s sincere.”
Paradise (1989)
To paraphrase J. B. S. Haldane, the universe not only held more red tape than anyone imagined; it held more red tape than anyone could imagine.
The Red Tape War (1991)
Redwine wondered what the going price of a conscience was, but named a figure that seemed to hover just between the top end of Reasonable and the bottom of Ostentatious.
Eros Ascending (1984)
“Nobody wins in a war.”
“Nonsense, Arthur. That sounds great in a university lecture or a book, but the fact is that someone always wins. Who do you think writes the history books? The winners.”
Inferno (1993)
“It is a world of bitter extremes of climate and a totalitarian theocracy.”
“That he believes in,” said Thaddeus.
“Believing in his religion makes it no less oppressive,” said Albert emotionlessly.
Sideshow (1982)
“Why did you ever like him, Mouse?” asked Penelope.
“I was lonely,” said the Mouse with a sigh, “and sometimes lonely people make poor choices.”
Soothsayer (1991)
“You’re going to find this hard to believe, but I don’t give a damn about the money,” answered Flint.
“‘Hard’ is an understatement,” said Mr. Ahasuerus. “I find it impossible to believe.”
The Best Rootin' Tootin' Shootin' Gunslinger in the Whole Damned Galaxy (1983)
“A very reasonable attitude,” said Mr. Ahasuerus.
“That’s probably why it’s so rare around here,” said Flint.
The Wild Alien Tamer (1983)
“Did you not ever want to see what was beyond the next hill, what strange and unique civilizations lay beyond your own?”
“Until I got there,” answered Monk.
The Wild Alien Tamer (1983)
“You didn’t really think it was funny, did you?”
“I laughed, didn’t I?” responded Crane.
“Insincerely.”
“Well, you can’t have everything.”
“No,” admitted the comedian. “But you can want everything.”
Eros at Zenith (1984)
And there was never any question about coming back: no one ever goes back to Peponi. Whatever it was that brought you there has got to change before you leave, and once it has changed, you don’t want to see what it’s become.
Paradise (1989)
Whether you approve of them or not, changes are coming to Karimon. It will become a modern world, a working member of the Republic. You can make the transition from savagery to civilization easier, or you can make it more difficult, but you cannot stop it.
Purgatory (1993)