--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Novels are such mysterious and amorphous…" description: "\"Novels are such mysterious and amorphous and tender things.\" — Arundhati Roy" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bf/arundhati-roy-346_books_novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous_1406173.png" --- # Novels are such mysterious and amorphous and tender things. ![“Novels are such mysterious and amorphous and tender things.” quote by Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bf/arundhati-roy-346_books_novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous_1406173.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bf/arundhati-roy-346_books_novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous_1406173.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bf/arundhati-roy-346_books_novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous_1406173.png) > “Novels are such mysterious and amorphous and tender things.” [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Novels are fluid, complex, and emotionally rich works of art. **In simple terms:** Novels are tender, mysterious, and shape. Key Takeaway Appreciate the depth of literature. Themes literature creativity emotion Mood reflective creative Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - reading clubs - creative writing - teaching literature - personal journaling Key Concepts narrative structure symbolism Questions to Reflect On - How do you experience a novel’s mood? - What makes a story feel tender? A Different Perspective Interpretations can vary widely among readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amorphous Tender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amorphous-tender-4943276/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Mysterious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious/) [Mysterious Amorphous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious-amorphous-2391225/) [Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels/) [Novels Mysterious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels-mysterious-2391223/) [Tender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tender/) [Tender Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tender-things-4339263/) [Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Novels are such mysterious and amorphous and tender things. And here we are with our crash helmets on, with concertina wire all around us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous-and-tender-things-and-here/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [If I were amazing with a sword, I wouldn't care about the tender things in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwendoline-christie/if-i-were-amazing-with-a-sword-i-wouldn-t-care-about-the-tender/) [Gwendoline Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwendoline-christie/) > [Elena Ferrante is the author of several novels. There is nothing mysterious about her, given how she manifests herself - perhaps even too much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/elena-ferrante-is-the-author-of-several-novels-there-is-nothing/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [In a separation it is the one who is not really in love who says the more tender things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/in-a-separation-it-is-the-one-who-is-not-really-in-love-who-says-the/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“Returning to bed, Rachel strokes Zachariah's black curls as he drifts into sleep and appreciates the shape and fractal geometry there, the self-similarity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-richler/returning-to-bed-rachel-strokes-zachariah-s-black-curls-as-he-drifts/) [Emma Richler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-richler/) > [“i'm glad to be alive in a world where his gently awakening eyes nourish the morning sun.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanober-khan/i-m-glad-to-be-alive-in-a-world-where-his-gently-awakening-eyes/) [Sanober Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanober-khan/) > [I'd like to do Nicole Diver in F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'Tender Is the Night,' if that ever gets made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosamund-pike/i-d-like-to-do-nicole-diver-in-f-scott-fitzgerald-s-tender-is-the/) [Rosamund Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosamund-pike/) > [Already with thee! tender is the night. . . But here there is no light. . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/already-with-thee-tender-is-the-night-but-here-there-is-no-light/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [“Dad?' 'Yeah?' 'Could you tell me a story?' 'Sure.' 'A good one.' 'As opposed to all the boring ones I tell.' 'Right.' I tucked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/dad-yeah-could-you-tell-me-a-story-sure-a-good-one-as-opposed-to-all/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [No matter how tough the meat may be, it's going to be tender if you slice it thin enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-fieri/no-matter-how-tough-the-meat-may-be-it-s-going-to-be-tender-if-you/) [Guy Fieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-fieri/) > [People will always need love, romance, a tender touch, and really personal and deeply felt music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-mccorkle/people-will-always-need-love-romance-a-tender-touch-and-really/) [Susannah McCorkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-mccorkle/) > [In this culture, the phrase 'black woman' is not synonymous with 'tender,' or 'gentle.' It's as if those words couldn't possibly speak to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bell-hooks/in-this-culture-the-phrase-black-woman-is-not-synonymous-with-tender/) [bell hooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bell-hooks/) > [“If we hug, we have tender heart towards each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/if-we-hug-we-have-tender-heart-towards-each-other/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Never anything can be amiss, when simpleness and duty tender it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/never-anything-can-be-amiss-when-simpleness-and-duty-tender-it/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [If there's something tender going on like that, I can't make up a joke and put it on Twitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-beaumont/if-there-s-something-tender-going-on-like-that-i-can-t-make-up-a-joke/) [Lucy Beaumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-beaumont/) ## More by Arundhati Roy > [...As the disparity between the rich and the poor grows, the fight to corner resources is intensifying. To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [In 2001, we were told that the war in Afghanistan was a feminist mission. The marines were liberating Afghan women from the Taliban. Can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/in-2001-we-were-told-that-the-war-in-afghanistan-was-a-feminist/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Poverty is a crime and the poor are terrorists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/poverty-is-a-crime-and-the-poor-are-terrorists/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Flat muscled and honey coloured. Sea secrets in his eyes. A silver raindrop in his ear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/flat-muscled-and-honey-coloured-sea-secrets-in-his-eyes-a-silver/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Fiction and non-fiction are only different techniques of story telling. For reasons I do not fully understand, fiction dances out of me. Non-fiction is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/fiction-and-non-fiction-are-only-different-techniques-of-story/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [NGOs have a complicated space in neoliberal politics. They are supposed to mop up the anger. Even when they are doing good work, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/ngos-have-a-complicated-space-in-neoliberal-politics-they-are/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I've never been that person who thought that because I've written one novel, I should write another and another. It's only when there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/i-ve-never-been-that-person-who-thought-that-because-i-ve-written-one/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [It is such a supreme folly to believe that nuclear weapons are deadly only if they're used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/it-is-such-a-supreme-folly-to-believe-that-nuclear-weapons-are-deadly/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I think one of the saddest things that's happening to literature is that it's getting over-simplified by this diet of simple political ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/i-think-one-of-the-saddest-things-that-s-happening-to-literature-is/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [The only dream worth having, I told her, is to dream that you will live while you're alive and die only when you're dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/the-only-dream-worth-having-i-told-her-is-to-dream-that-you-will-live/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [But what was there to say? Only that there were tears. Only that Quietness and Emptiness fitted together like stacked spoons. Only that there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/but-what-was-there-to-say-only-that-there-were-tears-only-that/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Truly, there's no alternative to stupidity. Cretinism is the mother of fascism. I have no defence against it, really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/truly-there-s-no-alternative-to-stupidity-cretinism-is-the-mother-of/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“...the secret of the Great Stories is that they have no secrets. The Great Stories are the ones you have heard and want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/the-secret-of-the-great-stories-is-that-they-have-no-secrets-the/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“stilts, the ground floors given over to parking. It’s a good idea in this car-maddened city,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/stilts-the-ground-floors-given-over-to-parking-it-s-a-good-idea-in/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“Perhaps it’s true that things can change in a day. That a few dozen hours can affect the outcome of whole lifetimes. And that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/perhaps-it-s-true-that-things-can-change-in-a-day-that-a-few-dozen/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) [Explore all 628 Arundhati Roy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Novels are such mysterious and amorphous and tender things.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Arundhati Roy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous-and-tender-things/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous-and-tender-things/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bf/arundhati-roy-346_books_novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous_1406173.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bf/arundhati-roy-346_books_novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous_1406173.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bf/arundhati-roy-346_books_novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous_1406173.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Novels are such mysterious and amorphous and tender things.” — Arundhati Roy", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Arundhati Roy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Novels are such mysterious and amorphous...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous-and-tender-things/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/novels-are-such-mysterious-and-amorphous-and-tender-things/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```