--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: London has the trick of making its past…" description: "\"London has the trick of making its past, its long indelible past, always a part of its present. And for that reason it will always have meaning for the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/307/anna-quindlen-467_book_london-has-the-trick-of-making-its-past_1195513.jpg" --- # London has the trick of making its past, its long… ![“London has the trick of making its past, its long indelible past, always a part of its present. And for that reason it will always have meaning for the future, because of all it can teach about disaster, survival, and redemption. It is all there in the streets. It is all there in the books.” quote by Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/307/anna-quindlen-467_book_london-has-the-trick-of-making-its-past_1195513.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/307/anna-quindlen-467_book_london-has-the-trick-of-making-its-past_1195513.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/307/anna-quindlen-467_book_london-has-the-trick-of-making-its-past_1195513.jpg) > “London has the trick of making its past, its long indelible past, always a part of its present. And for that reason it will always have meaning for the future, because of all it can teach about disaster, survival, and redemption. It is all there in the streets. It is all there in the books.” [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. London’s past permeates its present, offering lessons for future resilience and redemption **In simple terms:** History lives in the city’s streets and books Key Takeaway Learn from past struggles for future hope Themes history memory urban identity Mood nostalgic thoughtful Type observational literary When to use this quote - tourism - urban planning - education - personal reflection Key Concepts sociology literature Questions to Reflect On - What does London teach you about perseverance? - How can cities preserve memory while innovating? A Different Perspective Romanticizing the past can ignore present issues ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disaster/) [London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/london/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Past present](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-present/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Redemption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/redemption/) [Streets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streets/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“the knowledge in men's minds had far more meaning for the future than whatever blood coursed in their veins.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-r-fehrenbach-2/the-knowledge-in-men-s-minds-had-far-more-meaning-for-the-future-than/) [T.R. Fehrenbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-r-fehrenbach-2/) > [Learning from the past can be long and involved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/learning-from-the-past-can-be-long-and-involved/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is no Past, so long as Books shall live!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/there-is-no-past-so-long-as-books-shall-live/) [Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/) > [We are anxious in the face of our unchangeable past; we long to recreate segments of our private histories, but we are stuck with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/we-are-anxious-in-the-face-of-our-unchangeable-past-we-long-to/) [Lewis B. 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It’s such a long time ago now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mitford/oh-my-past-it-s-such-a-long-time-ago-now/) [Nancy Mitford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mitford/) > [The history of the past is but one long struggle upward to equality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-cady-stanton/the-history-of-the-past-is-but-one-long-struggle-upward-to-equality/) [Elizabeth Cady Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-cady-stanton/) > [No matter how happy I had been in the past I do not long for it. 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I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. 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