Цитаты из книги «Бесконечная земля», страница 2

Хотя одна философская школа считала, что сам спор о том, что делало вас французом, был частью того, что делало вас французом.

Один английский политик как-то сказал, что, если отвесить ему пинок под зад, ни один мускул не дернется на его лице, пока он не решит, как поступить.

Worst of all were the ones fleeing from the wrath of God, or maybe looking for it. There was an awful lot of that. Was the Long Earth a sign of the End of Days? Of the destruction of the old world, and a new world made ready for the chosen people? Too many people wanted to be among the chosen, and too many people thought that God would provide, in these paradisiacal worlds. God provided in abundance, it was true, vast amounts of food that you could see running around. But God also helped those who helped themselves, and presumably expected the chosen to bring warm clothing, water purification tablets, basic medication, a weapon such as the bronze knives that were selling so well these days, possibly a tent – in short, to bring some common sense to the party. And if you didn’t, and if you were lucky, it would only be the mosquitoes that got you. Only. In Joshua’s opinion, if you wanted to extend the biblical metaphor, then this apocalypse had four horsemen of its own, their names being Greed, Failing to Follow the Rules, Confusion and Miscellaneous Abrasions. Joshua had got sick of having to save the Saved.

женский таз сжимается, чтобы обеспечить бипедализм, но в то же время мозг ребенка становился больше - именно поэтому мы рождаемся такими беспомощными

у его исследователей не просто неправильная картина, они вообще находились в неправильной картинной галерее

В данном случае всадников Апокалипсиса было четверо, и их звали Жадность, Неумение следовать правилам, Беспорядок и Многочисленные ссадины.Опасность неизвесна. И неизмерима.

Когда просыпаешься поутру, подумай, какая это привилегия - быть живым, дышать, думать, наслаждаться, любить.

‘You don’t believe in modesty, do you, Mr Lobsang?’

‘Absolutely not, Henry. Modesty is only arrogance by stealth.’

‘Sister Serendipity is a world expert on cookery through the ages. In particular she has a book by somebody called Dorothy Hartley, called Food in England. Serendipity knows all that stuff; she can make a good meal out of anything. You should see her roadkill hot pot, always a favourite. She taught me a lot about living off the land.’

‘It is remarkable for a woman with such skills to devote her time to unfortunate young people. Such dedication.’

Joshua nodded. ‘Well, yes. And maybe also because she is wanted by the FBI, which is why she doesn’t go out much and sleeps in the basement. Sister Agnes said that it was all a big misunderstanding, and in any case the bullet missed the senator by a mile. They don’t talk about it much.’

‘Oh, and do you have a thing about cats?’

‘They make me sneeze.’

‘Shi-mi won’t.’

‘Shi-mi?’

‘Another first for transEarth. You’ve seen the size of this gondola; it is lousy with hard-to-get-to spaces, and vermin may be a problem for us. It wouldn’t be hard for them to scramble up our anchor cables when we land. The last thing we want is a rat nibbling on a wire. So, meet Shi-mi. Come, kitty kitty…’

A cat walked on to the deck. It was supple, silent, almost convincing. But there was an LED spark in each green eye.

‘I can tell you that she—’

‘She, Lobsang?’

‘She can, on demand, make a pleasant purring noise designed to be optimally soothing to the human ear. She can track mice via infra red, and has excellent hearing. She will stun her prey with a low current, swallow it into a designated stomach with a small food and water dispenser, and then will carefully transfer the catch to a small holding vivarium, where the mouse can live happily until it can be relocated somewhere safe.’

‘That’s going to a lot of trouble for a mouse.’

‘That is the Buddhist way. This prototype is clean and hygienic, will not harm her prey and, in general, will do most of the things you would expect of a domestic cat, except for shitting in your stereo headphones – a common complaint I’m told. Oh, in the default setting she will sleep on your bed.’