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Stephen stared at the ceiling of his room and thought, as he did every morning, about simply not getting out of bed.

— Paladin's Grace by T. Kingfisher (The Saint of Steel, #1) (2%)

A life surrounded by good people is a successful life. It might not be success as defined by society, but thanks to the people around you, each day is a successful day.

— Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, Shanna Tan (87%)

Yes, I wanted to say happiness is never beyond reach. It's not in the distant past, not on the horizon of the future. It's right in front of me. Like that day's beer, and today's quince tea.

— Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, Shanna Tan (62%)

When significant proportions of our time are spent working, recuperating from work, compensating for work, or doing the many things necessary in order to find, prepare for, and hold on to work, it becomes increasingly difficult to say how much of our time is truly our own.

— Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, Shanna Tan (47%)

The Puritan work ethic has also influenced the way we think about work—placing work on a moral pedestal. Those who work are contributing members of society; skivers are useless. It's ridiculous that the idea of hard work as a way of gaining salvation survived centuries, crossing time and space to be passed on to people like me—a non-religious person living in twenty-first-century Korea, precariously holding on to my job.

— Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, Shanna Tan (46%)

As I close the book, I think to myself — I should stop labelling myself an inadequate person. I still have opportunities, don't I? Opportunities to act kindly, to speak with compassion. Even a disappointing human like myself can still be, occasionally, a good person. The idea gives me strength. And for the days ahead, I hope.

— Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, Shanna Tan (31%)