Endless, decades-long sermons and meetings. Nobody had warned that it would involve so much small-talk over good china with elderly aunts, so much pointless mending and quilting or, even worse, so many deathly dull sermons. She would write home, boasting of her new experiences. New food! A new culture! New experiences! She had pictured herself in New York, neat in a two-piece suit in bustling restaurants and on crowded sidewalks. Travel to a new land! She had married an American, after all.

Married life, she had been told, would be an adventure. – The Giver of Stars book by Jojo Moyes – the-giver-of-stars-quotes Doesn’t matter how smart you are, how clever, how self-reliant – you can always be bettered by a stupid man with a gun. There is the bare truth of it, for her and all the women around here. She has never been afraid of much, but she’s familiar enough with these mountain men to know not to pick a fight with a drunk. – The Giver of Stars book by Jojo Moyes – jojo-moyes-quotes, the-giver-of-stars-quotes You hear me? There is always a way around. Might leave you feeling like the earth has gone and shifted under your feet. There is always a way out of a situation. There was still beauty in this world, even if some days it took every bit of strength and obstinacy to find it. But when you look outwards, why, there’s a whole world of beautiful things. Not much point worrying what the town thinks about you – nothing you can do about that anyway. It’s when you realize they can always just shut you up with a fist. That it don’t matter how smart you are, how much better at arguing, how much better than them, period. It’s that in that instant you realize the truth of what it is to be a woman. You know the worst thing about a man hitting you? Ain’t the hurt. – The Giver of Stars book by Jojo Moyes – jojo-moyes-quotes, the-giver-of-stars-quotes, life-quotes Which is why finding a little joy where you can is important. It is about duty, and taking satisfaction from doing the right thing.

The giver of stars book