Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1) QUOTES

1 " What fools the public were! They were exactly like sheep…thought Mr. Abbott sleepily…following each other’s lead, neglecting one book and buying another just because other people were buying it, although, for the life of you, you couldn’t see what the one lacked and the other possessed. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

2 " Some people’s elegance was only skin-deep, scrape off a little bit of the veneer and you got the real wood—common "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

3 " It was just the old house creaking in the wind, and talking to itself about all it had seen, and the big cheerful families which it had sheltered and sent forth into the world. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

4 " Poverty is easy to bear if it is only temporary, easier still if it is an entirely voluntary burden. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

5 " Few of us have the necessary unselfishness to hear with gladness the talents of others extolled or to listen with patience to the successes of those whom we despise—Vivian "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

6 " Nell wagged her feathery tail. It was good when the goddess descended from the clouds and spoke to you; it gave you a cozy safe feeling in your inside. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

7 " Disturber of the Peace.” Miss Buncle’s book intrigued Mr. Abbott, and Miss Buncle herself intrigued him. She was such a queer mixture of simplicity and subtlety (at least he thought she was). She spoke bad grammar and wrote good English. She was meticulously truthful in all she said (it was almost as if she were on oath to speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth all day long and every day of the week). "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

8 " I never really thought or believed in my bones that the book would be published. I just finished it and sent it up—” “And why to me?” inquired Mr. Abbott with much interest. “I mean why did you send the book to me? Perhaps you had heard from somebody that our firm—” “Oh, no,” she exclaimed. “I knew nothing at all about publishers. You were the first on the list—alphabetically—that was all.” Mr. Abbott was somewhat taken aback—on such trifles hang the fates of bestsellers! "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

9 " I wish I was dead,” Barbara said. “I wish I had somebody to talk to. I wish—” “You better go out, Miss Barbara,” said Dorcas crossly. “What’s the good of wishing you was dead, and then wishing you had somebody to talk to? You couldn’t talk if you was dead. If you was to go out for a nice walk you might meet somebody to talk to, and I’d get on with my work—I’m behind ’and as it is. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

10 " ealth you can do anything you set your mind "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

11 " Awfully sorry, I must go now,” said the Vicar, struggling into his blazer. “The truth is my uncle is coming for two nights—” He said good-bye to everybody and strode off. He was late, for the set had lasted longer than he had expected. He wondered if it would matter much if he broke into a run. Would it do Silverstream any harm to see its Vicar doubling along the High Street like an ordinary young man? Perhaps it was better just to walk quickly. When you became a Vicar it seemed necessary to stifle so many natural impulses. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

12 " It’s like this, Uncle Mike,” Ernest said, clasping his hands round his knees and looking up at the other man with his frank gaze, “I’ve got too much money.” The fat man began to laugh; he laughed and wheezed and laughed again. “You’ve got your asthma—” said Ernest anxiously. “You’re enough to give anyone—asthma,” gasped Uncle Mike. “Absolutely unique in this planet—don’t you know that the—whole world is on the verge of bankruptcy?” “I’m not talking about the whole world,” replied Ernest. “I’m talking about myself. Here am I, a strong healthy man, living in luxury—it’s not right.” “You can help people, Ernest.” “There is nobody here that needs help,” Ernest replied, “nobody really poor. Of course I can give money away to people, but it doesn’t do much good—in fact I’m beginning to see that it does harm. People here think that I’ve got plenty of money and they come to me with tales—not always strictly true—and expect me to help them. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

13 " Yes, but the system is all wrong. The whole thing is back to front—oh it’s so difficult to explain—” Ernest cried, waving his arms. “My mind is so full of it all that I simply can’t put it into words. Look at the Apostles, look at St. Francis! They stripped themselves of their worldly goods (perhaps it was to teach people to give) and they didn’t starve, did they?” “People fed them,” replied Uncle Mike. “People don’t feed saints nowadays; they ask them why they are not on the dole, and advise them to apply for parish relief. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

14 " The world is far from perfect. There are lots of things wrong but you can’t change the world.” “I don’t want to change the world—at least perhaps I do want to, but I’m not such a fool as to think I can—that isn’t the point. The point is that there’s something wrong here, something wrong in my life and I’ve got to change it. I’m going to try and live on my stipend, Uncle Mike. After all a man should be able to live on very little. Look at St. Francis— "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

15 " At the end of a year the matter would be reconsidered. Mr. Whitney insisted on the year’s probation—Ernest might want to marry, or he, himself, might die; anything might happen in a year— “Good,” said Ernest at last, stretching his arms, “I’m free.” “You are bound,” thought Mr. Whitney but he was too wise to say so. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

16 " Mrs. Featherstone Hogg was its most valuable publicity agent; she went round in her car distributing invitations to her drawing-room meeting and copies of Disturber of the Peace to all those who had not read it. She did not realize that John Smith obtained royalties upon every copy of this book that was sold, or she would have confined her expenditure upon the book to narrower limits. It would have distressed her exceedingly to think that she was putting money into the pocket of the detestable John Smith. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

17 " Sometimes Dr. John teased his wife about her interest in his work, and told her that she had picked his brains for five years, and that she thought she was as good a doctor as he was; and then, just to teach her, he would break into technicalities of medical jargon and Sarah would toss her head and say, “What’s the good of all those silly Latin names? It doesn’t help to cure people to call their diseases by names of five syllables. Of course you only do it to bamboozle the poor things and make them think that you are a great deal cleverer than you really are. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

18 " Clocks need a man to keep them in proper subjection.) "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

19 " a tyro, "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)

20 " (Mr. Black his name was, and he was one of Mrs. Dick’s paying guests) had looked up from his desk and seen who it was and gone on writing for at least two minutes before he came to see what she wanted. No need to bother about that old frump, he had said to himself—or Barbara thought that he had. Barbara was sure that he knew her account was overdrawn; perhaps he had been told not to cash any more checks for Miss Buncle. When he had quite finished what he was doing he lounged over to the counter and she produced the note. “Ha, don’t often see these chaps about!” he had remarked in his familiar way, which Barbara detested. “A little present from my uncle,” said Barbara, quite casually, as if it were quite a usual occurrence to receive hundred pound notes from your uncle. “Must be a rich man, your uncle,” suggested Mr. Black, filling up forms—his manner had altered toward her, at least so Barbara imagined; he was much more respectful and attentive. It was the rich uncle in the background she supposed. "

― D.E. Stevenson , Miss Buncle's Book (Barbara Buncle #1)