“... once from her expression that he was not the only one who had been afraid that her absence . . . may have brought these silent encounters of theirs to an end’. He sent her a letter through her maid, declaring his love, even though they had not yet spoken a word to one another. He was unexpectedly – blissfully – promoted to lieutenant, sure it was ...”

“... set the tone for each collection. And her choice of form (she only writes short stories) may well be influenced by this material no sooner grasped than gone, these shape-changing offspring. Many writers, even most writers, at least since Goethe and Wordsworth, have explored what it means to have been children; we all have that experience in ...”

“... That would leave open the possibility that, if a kind of creature is pretty fit overall, there may be room for it to acquire traits that don’t themselves contribute to its fitness; or, indeed, traits that militate against its fitness. A passion for opera, for example. Anyhow, a lot of Mithen’s book is dedicated to imagining a variety of scenarios in ...”

“... learning, judgment, wit and literary sophistication with which Manuel builds up his case. But it may suggest reasons for thinking this much the most stimulating book on Newton and his science which we have. Manuel makes it abundantly clear that he is not ‘explaining’ Newton’s genius, but only the outward forms in which this genius was expressed. Work ...”

“... Six weeks later: ‘If my health gets better and there is a war – it is not off the cards that I may go to Spain.’ Two weeks later: ‘I sometimes dream of returning to England for a short time.’ The next month: ‘It is more than probable that I shall go up into Greece.’ Although Byron didn’t know it when he wrote the last sentence, he had already ...”

“... ghosts, especially at night.’ And as he meditates on his own value, he concludes: ‘My talent may be of copper not of gold ... but I have put it to the best use I could.’ He arranged that his epitaph describe him as one ‘Who with a humble heart strove to serve his country’. I think he’d be pleased to know that he’s done so by inventing the ...”

“... of Landau’, which he started at the age of 25, and unsparingly sustained thereafter, may have been his greatest achievement. It was certainly a remarkable institution. There was no public qualification for admission. One just had to satisfy Landau personally that one had reached his ‘theoretical minimum’ – that is to say, that one knew all ...”

“... sojourn in Surinam: ‘But she was never afraid, she said. Never once hesitated; though her memory may have colored [sic] her original experience. She drank in every detail ...’ There is nothing resembling Maureen Duffy’s grasp (the result of deep study of the state papers, the point at which the amanuensis flinched) of the complex international, national ...”

“... take care how you answer it – Be kind but make no promises and above all do not say a word that may imply any responsibility on your part for her future actions – I shall most likely not see your letter but I shall be very anxious for its ... contents for you are warmhearted ... & indeed sweetest very indiscreet ... pardon this but pray attend to it ...”

“... exception, wanted something from him for nothing.’ The idea that he was uniquely hard done by may have been painful, but for a practical man like Lowry it was not inconvenient. It enabled him, for instance, to do some very shady deals, signing reproductions of his paintings so that they could be sold at 20 times their value. He didn’t have any other ...”

“... whose savage pamphlet, often right about details and mostly wrong about the larger issues, may have helped to produce the fortunate effect of Nietzsche’s becoming a philosophical writer rather than remaining a philologist – though he was already set on that course before he published The Birth of Tragedy. Their commentary also provides information ...”

“... find a technology that worked. The greatest of his innovations was the Tariff Reform campaign. It may be that Chamberlain’s imperialism developed out of his alliance with the Conservative Party, but it was also a genuine exercise in statecraft. At the close of the 19th century Chamberlain represented a new school of thought, conscious of the growing ...”

“... her up.’ When we refuse, and ask them why they do not give her some deadly poison each day that may not prove more destructive, they, of course, think us demented.One dreadful mother, Flynt wrote, insisted that her daughter’s waist ‘must not measure over eighteen inches’ for her coming-out party and used French corsets to shrink her. The consequences ...”

“... was meant as a score for painting, poetry, objects, events or music, although these categories may also be a provocation in themselves (if you’re burying a cloud in the garden, is it an event or a poem?). Ono’s own subversive gestures have been recuperated by the institutions at which they were directed. In the winter of 1971, she placed adverts in ...”

“... North African sands, obliged to throw themselves on the Carthaginians’ mercy. History and legend may be more reliable prognosticators than the promises of a fictional god. Troy fell; Carthage fell; why should Rome be any different?The Roman Empire reached its greatest extent under Trajan, nearly 150 years after Virgil’s death, in the early years of ...”