What George told Mrs. Rock then was that her mother was under surveillance and had been being monitored by spies.
Mrs. Rock: "You believe your mother was being monitored by spies?"
That was what counselors were trained to do, to say back to you what it was you said, but in the form of a question so you could ask yourself why you'd thought or said it. It was soul-destroying.***
from Ali Smith's How To Be Both: A Novel
***The last two lines were what I thought really good -- I added the preceding ones because it needed context.
Yes!
ReplyDeleteI, too, love to find lines that I wish someone was around to share them with. A great book has many.
I read a lot and a good book takes me inside someone else's life and mind. I get to see things, understand things, feel things from a different point of view. It enlarges my world. I am so thankful there are writers in this world.
ReplyDeleteNOW I know why counselors do that! I thought they were just stalling for time. Tells you how much rethinking I did! Love this new meme.
ReplyDeleteI"m not anonymous I'm Milkweedmama formerly of the Secret Pepper Society aka Faith but far too lazy to figure out any enrollment involving long forgotten pass words! Once in a while I lurk here and think of you often and your beautiful family. This post made me laugh. It was exactly what i was forced to practice in my psych rotation on the locked ward at the local VA hospital. " I was abducted and probed by aliens." "You believe you were abducted and probed by aliens?" Now, 40 years later and 40 years of nursing under my scrubs I would want to know what the interior of the space ship looked like, what was probed and every detail of their conversation if any.
ReplyDeleteI love it! Just a few days ago I posted a line from the Lorrie Moore book I'm reading (well, was reading - I finished it in one day) because I just wanted someone else to hear the words the way I heard them in my head. I love writers that form these delicious sentences and make me laugh out loud or see something in an entirely new way. And I love hearing about new books and authors - you often introduce me to new ones that I end up loving, so thanks for that.
ReplyDeleteI am currently reading a book that I just grabbed off the bookshelf because I was in a hurry. So far it is full of delicious sentences. The story line ok but the sentences are yummy! (Lost & Found by Brooke Davis)
ReplyDeleteI've heard that's a great book. I haven't tackled it yet!
ReplyDelete