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Top 500 Barbara Kingsolver Quotes (2026 Update)
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Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “First they would stagger, then grow competent, and then forget the difficulty altogether while thinking of other things, and that was survival.”

451. “First they would stagger, then grow competent, and then forget the difficulty altogether while thinking of other things, and that was survival.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Want is a thing that unfurls unbidden like fungus, opening large upon itself, stopless, filling the sky. But needs, from one day to the next, are few enough to fit in a bucket, with room enough left to rattle like brittle brush in a dry wind.”

452. “Want is a thing that unfurls unbidden like fungus, opening large upon itself, stopless, filling the sky. But needs, from one day to the next, are few enough to fit in a bucket, with room enough left to rattle like brittle brush in a dry wind.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “When people are frightened about going hungry and paying their mortgages, a scarcity model begins to prevail; they fear someone else will get their piece of the pie.”

453. “When people are frightened about going hungry and paying their mortgages, a scarcity model begins to prevail; they fear someone else will get their piece of the pie.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “We’re surrounded by mandates, and I believe that literature should be mandate-free. I feel very strongly about that.”

454. “We’re surrounded by mandates, and I believe that literature should be mandate-free. I feel very strongly about that.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Questioning our government’s actions does not violate the principles of liberty, equality, and freedom of speech; it exercises them, and by exercise we grow stronger. I have read enough of Thomas Jefferson to feel sure.”

455. “Questioning our government’s actions does not violate the principles of liberty, equality, and freedom of speech; it exercises them, and by exercise we grow stronger. I have read enough of Thomas Jefferson to feel sure.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “It was pretty clear there would be no stopping the Bullhorn, or someone like him. Here was the earthquake, the fire, flood, and melting permafrost, with everyone still grabbing for bricks to put in their pockets rather than walking out of the wreck and looking for light.”

456. “It was pretty clear there would be no stopping the Bullhorn, or someone like him. Here was the earthquake, the fire, flood, and melting permafrost, with everyone still grabbing for bricks to put in their pockets rather than walking out of the wreck and looking for light.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “The best artifact was the calendar of the ancients, a great carved piece of stone as big as a kitchen, circular, bolted to the wall like a giant clock. In the center was an angry face looking out, as if he’d come through that stone from some other place to have a look at us, and not very pleased about it.”

457. “The best artifact was the calendar of the ancients, a great carved piece of stone as big as a kitchen, circular, bolted to the wall like a giant clock. In the center was an angry face looking out, as if he’d come through that stone from some other place to have a look at us, and not very pleased about it.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “It’s frightening, she thinks, how when the going gets rough you fall back on whatever awful think you grew up with.”

458. “It’s frightening, she thinks, how when the going gets rough you fall back on whatever awful think you grew up with.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Because I write fiction that is based in the real world, it’s going to lead people into some of the modern dilemmas and concerns and even catastrophes that they will think about in a new way.”

459. “Because I write fiction that is based in the real world, it’s going to lead people into some of the modern dilemmas and concerns and even catastrophes that they will think about in a new way.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Come to think of it, just about every tool was shaped like either a weenie or a pistol, depending on your point of view.”

460. “Come to think of it, just about every tool was shaped like either a weenie or a pistol, depending on your point of view.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “The part of my soul that is driven to make stories is a fierce thing, like a ferret: long, sleek, incapable of sleep, it digs and bites through all I know of the world.”

461. “The part of my soul that is driven to make stories is a fierce thing, like a ferret: long, sleek, incapable of sleep, it digs and bites through all I know of the world.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “She never wore a watch, and for this she didn’t need one.”

462. “She never wore a watch, and for this she didn’t need one.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “A life was a life. She’d been orphaned at an age to internalize death as poor material for a joke. And likewise, salvation.”

463. “A life was a life. She’d been orphaned at an age to internalize death as poor material for a joke. And likewise, salvation.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “He had senile dementia and liked to go outside naked, but he could still do two things perfectly: win at checkers and write out prescriptions.”

464. “He had senile dementia and liked to go outside naked, but he could still do two things perfectly: win at checkers and write out prescriptions.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “White is not an origin. It’s a mental construct of privilege.”

465. “White is not an origin. It’s a mental construct of privilege.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “The longer you live, the more likely you are to have something to say.”

466. “The longer you live, the more likely you are to have something to say.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “As the storm moved closer it broke into hundreds of pieces so that the rain fell here and there from the high clouds in long, curving gray plumes. It looked like maybe fifty or sixty fires scattered over the city, except that the tall, smoky columns were flowing in reverse.”

467. “As the storm moved closer it broke into hundreds of pieces so that the rain fell here and there from the high clouds in long, curving gray plumes. It looked like maybe fifty or sixty fires scattered over the city, except that the tall, smoky columns were flowing in reverse.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “He spoke for an hour on the nonviolent road to independence. The crowd loved it so much they rioted and killed twelve people.”

468. “He spoke for an hour on the nonviolent road to independence. The crowd loved it so much they rioted and killed twelve people.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Like many human beings, he took the least sign of conversation as his cue to make noise.”

469. “Like many human beings, he took the least sign of conversation as his cue to make noise.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “I’m never going to tell the reader what to believe; I’m going to examine these characters that believe different ways, and examine their motives.”

470. “I’m never going to tell the reader what to believe; I’m going to examine these characters that believe different ways, and examine their motives.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “When the rain pours down especially, we have long hours of captivity, in which my sisters determinedly grow bored. But are there books, books there are! Rattling words on the page calling my eyes to dance with them. Everyone else will finish with the singular plowing through, and Ada still has discoveries ahead and behind.”

471. “When the rain pours down especially, we have long hours of captivity, in which my sisters determinedly grow bored. But are there books, books there are! Rattling words on the page calling my eyes to dance with them. Everyone else will finish with the singular plowing through, and Ada still has discoveries ahead and behind.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “I read in a book that they cut off the workers’ hands if they hadn’t collected enough rubber by the end of the day. The Belgian foremen would bring baskets full of brown hands back to the boss, piled up like a mess of fish. Could this be true of civilized white Christians?”

472. “I read in a book that they cut off the workers’ hands if they hadn’t collected enough rubber by the end of the day. The Belgian foremen would bring baskets full of brown hands back to the boss, piled up like a mess of fish. Could this be true of civilized white Christians?”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Sunday school stories are just another type of superhero comic. Counting on Jesus to save the day is no more real than sending up the Batman signal.”

473. “Sunday school stories are just another type of superhero comic. Counting on Jesus to save the day is no more real than sending up the Batman signal.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Of the two hundred bones in the human body, more than a quarter are in the foot. It is a more complicated instrument than an automobile transmission, and it is treated with far less consideration.”

474. “Of the two hundred bones in the human body, more than a quarter are in the foot. It is a more complicated instrument than an automobile transmission, and it is treated with far less consideration.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Don’t count on it. There’s a lot of white folks out there hanging on to their God-given right to look down on some other class of people.”

475. “Don’t count on it. There’s a lot of white folks out there hanging on to their God-given right to look down on some other class of people.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Her every possession was either unbreakable, or broken.”

476. “Her every possession was either unbreakable, or broken.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Humans are in love with the idea of our persisting,′ he said. ‘We fetishize it, really. Our retirement funds, our genealogies. Our so-called ideas for the ages.”

477. “Humans are in love with the idea of our persisting,′ he said. ‘We fetishize it, really. Our retirement funds, our genealogies. Our so-called ideas for the ages.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “I never think that anything I’m writing is bluntly political in any way. I’m not going for commentary.”

478. “I never think that anything I’m writing is bluntly political in any way. I’m not going for commentary.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Think of all the duties that were perfectly obvious to Paul or Matthew in that old Arabian desert that are pure nonsense to us now. All that foot washing, for example. Was it really for God’s glory or just to keep the sand out of the house?”

479. “Think of all the duties that were perfectly obvious to Paul or Matthew in that old Arabian desert that are pure nonsense to us now. All that foot washing, for example. Was it really for God’s glory or just to keep the sand out of the house?”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “A kid is a terrible thing to be, in charge of nothing.”

480. “A kid is a terrible thing to be, in charge of nothing.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Tig was a unique element with all valences open.”

481. “Tig was a unique element with all valences open.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Was it normal now for parents to operate in the dark? She never knew what was fair to ask.”

482. “Was it normal now for parents to operate in the dark? She never knew what was fair to ask.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Our plans are small and somewhat absurd.”

483. “Our plans are small and somewhat absurd.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “There are some who’d hardly lift a finger for kindness, but they would haul up a load of rock to dump on some soul they think’s been too lucky.”

484. “There are some who’d hardly lift a finger for kindness, but they would haul up a load of rock to dump on some soul they think’s been too lucky.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “In fact, one of the things that I really love about literary fiction is that it’s one of the few kinds of writing that doesn’t tell us what to think or what to buy or what to wear. We’re surrounded by advertising.”

485. “In fact, one of the things that I really love about literary fiction is that it’s one of the few kinds of writing that doesn’t tell us what to think or what to buy or what to wear. We’re surrounded by advertising.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “They saw that even the crooked girl believed her own life was precious. That is what it means to be a beast in the kingdom.”

486. “They saw that even the crooked girl believed her own life was precious. That is what it means to be a beast in the kingdom.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “People ask without wanting to know.”

487. “People ask without wanting to know.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “As to the career of avoiding making enemies. You can’t dig any burrow deep enough. Might as well stand and look them in the eye.”

488. “As to the career of avoiding making enemies. You can’t dig any burrow deep enough. Might as well stand and look them in the eye.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “We’re genetically predisposed toward certain behaviors that we’ve collectively decided are unhelpful; adultery and racism are possible examples. With reasonable success, we mitigate those impulses through civil codes, religious rituals, maternal warnings – the whole bag of tricks we call culture.”

489. “We’re genetically predisposed toward certain behaviors that we’ve collectively decided are unhelpful; adultery and racism are possible examples. With reasonable success, we mitigate those impulses through civil codes, religious rituals, maternal warnings – the whole bag of tricks we call culture.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “If people played their channels right, they could be spared from disagreement for the length of their natural lives. Finally she got it. The need for so many channels.”

490. “If people played their channels right, they could be spared from disagreement for the length of their natural lives. Finally she got it. The need for so many channels.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “I learned to produce whether I wanted to or not. It would be easy to say oh, I have writer’s block, oh, I have to wait for my muse. I don’t. Chain that muse to your desk and get the job done.”

491. “I learned to produce whether I wanted to or not. It would be easy to say oh, I have writer’s block, oh, I have to wait for my muse. I don’t. Chain that muse to your desk and get the job done.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “People buying apples and green beans usually have some degree of joy in their hearts.”

492. “People buying apples and green beans usually have some degree of joy in their hearts.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “He needs to go rub his soul against life.”

493. “He needs to go rub his soul against life.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “She laid the side of her face against his frail old heart, where the pink shell of her ear could capture whatever song it had left.”

494. “She laid the side of her face against his frail old heart, where the pink shell of her ear could capture whatever song it had left.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “People love to read about sins and errors, but not their own.”

495. “People love to read about sins and errors, but not their own.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Featured in: Reading Quotes

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “I’m always looking at the dialectic between the truth we believe exists outside ourselves and the truth we invent for ourselves.”

496. “I’m always looking at the dialectic between the truth we believe exists outside ourselves and the truth we invent for ourselves.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “I’m out of the habit. I’ve spent years trying not to want. Just, you know, as an endeavor, like quitting smoking.”

497. “I’m out of the habit. I’ve spent years trying not to want. Just, you know, as an endeavor, like quitting smoking.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “Teaching struck Willa as a saintly calling, especially given the pay. But even saints shouldn’t be stuck with intro classes forever.”

498. “Teaching struck Willa as a saintly calling, especially given the pay. But even saints shouldn’t be stuck with intro classes forever.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “I keep hoping some guy with ‘Ron’ or ‘Andy’ stitched on his pocket and a gas pump in his hand will step up and tell me where I’m headed.”

499. “I keep hoping some guy with ‘Ron’ or ‘Andy’ stitched on his pocket and a gas pump in his hand will step up and tell me where I’m headed.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver Quote: “It was hard to see where all this could possibly go when it melted.”

500. “It was hard to see where all this could possibly go when it melted.”

— Barbara Kingsolver

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