“I was born, and then I was quietly resentful of that fact for a few years...but then I went to a library… — Helen Oyeyemi Libraries Copy Share Image
“She has a soft spot for houses that look sensible until you get inside.” — Helen Oyeyemi Gingerbread Copy Share Image
I know of witches who whistle at different pitches, calling things that don't have names. — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
“Oh, everyone’s got a view, haven’t they? .. Everyone’s got something to say," she’d tell me. ..” — Helen Oyeyemi Point of view Copy Share Image
“It was the usual struggle between one who loves by accepting burdens and one who loves by refusing to be” — Helen Oyeyemi Adversity Copy Share Image
I love taking things out of context and playing with them and chopping up rules. — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
Nobody ever warned me about mirrors, so for many years I was fond of them, and believed them to be trustworthy. . . — Helen Oyeyemi Inspirational Copy Share Image
And she walked away, and she walked away, and that was that, and that was that. — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
“I've read that madness is present when everything you see and hear takes on an equal significance. A dead bird makes you… — Helen Oyeyemi Madness Copy Share Image
“In Egypt, like everywhere, the land is made to fit the sky; but here it is more so. Here it is possible… — Helen Oyeyemi Horizon Copy Share Image
Her heart was heavy because it was open, and so things filled it, and so things rushed out of it, but still… — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
“No, this is pretty much the same version I read," I said, because it felt too damn late to back down. I… — Helen Oyeyemi Government Copy Share Image
“He was drinking Harriet's favourite, cold tea... not iced tea, but hot tea that had cooled. They liked him so much. They… — Helen Oyeyemi Character-description Copy Share Image
“Daphne came in with her arms full of books, and her eyes blazing like two poisoned moons. "How'd you like the mess… — Helen Oyeyemi Books Copy Share Image
“To the naked eye Boudicca is a haze of noxious green that lurks among fronds of seaweed looking exactly like the aftermath… — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
“She doesn’t complain about anything I do; she is physically unable to. That’s because I fixed her early. I told her in… — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
“His puppets have a nihilistic spirit, if you'd understand what I meant by that. Sometimes his puppets won't perform at all. He… — Helen Oyeyemi Nihilistic Copy Share Image
I think I started writing about identity, and I used to believe that identity is the story. But now I'm not so… — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
I have been in love with Emily Dickinson's poetry since I was 13, and, like an anonymous post on findagrave.com says, 'Dear… — Helen Oyeyemi Abstract Copy Share Image
“...there’s a part of my heart or mind, or some spot where the two meet, a spot that isn’t mine because I’m… — Helen Oyeyemi Body love Copy Share Image
“She ought to know that if you want to set yourself up as queen and have everything the way you want it… — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
I remember that I used to get lots of books from the library, and 'Little Women' was one of them. And I… — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
Dickinson is my hero because she was a joker, because she would never explain, because as a poet she confronted pain, dread… — Helen Oyeyemi Adventurer Copy Share Image
“So she quit working to make sense of things— we don’t realise it, but it’s hard work we do almost every waking… — Helen Oyeyemi Balance Copy Share Image
“The best line of work for me would be roadside sprite. I'd live quietly by a dust-covered track that people never came… — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
“And I think I decided not to love Charlie because I thought I had to be rescued. For practical reasons but also… — Helen Oyeyemi Fairy tales Copy Share Image
“There was a framed photograph hung on the wall in front of me, and when I said your name I saw you… — Helen Oyeyemi Black and white Copy Share Image
“Lucy happily settled down to work. First she sent for papyrus and handmade a book leaf by leaf, binding the leaves together… — Helen Oyeyemi Books Copy Share Image
“She isn't a storm or a leader or a king or a war or anyone whose life and death makes noise. The… — Helen Oyeyemi Death Copy Share Image
“I think her favorite thing about our . . . collaboration was her actor and musician friends rubbing shoulders with my academic… — Helen Oyeyemi Academics Copy Share Image
“Mostly, when Jess didn't want to talk about her ideas in class, Colleen thought that Jess was showing off, making sure that… — Helen Oyeyemi Butterflies Copy Share Image
“Pops says he loves me just the way I am, but not everyone in the world is like my father. Maman, for… — Helen Oyeyemi Parenting Copy Share Image
“ The water is very green and has a sweet taste, both boys wrote in their diaries, at different times.” — Helen Oyeyemi Diaries Copy Share Image
“Other things my best friend said to me: That two years was but a short span.” — Helen Oyeyemi Best friend Copy Share Image
“All around them people were speaking a language Brown didn’t understand; it was like silence with sharp edges in it.” — Helen Oyeyemi Language Copy Share Image
I love character and voice, and my favourite books have been the ones in which I've become completely absorbed. — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
I can recommend wearing blue mascara whilst writing. I'm telling you, it really adds something. — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
I do tend to feel more connected to dead writers, perhaps because they have finished their work. — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
I've always felt happy in my own company. It's only when I get around other people that things get sticky. — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
“They tried their best with each other, but it just wasn’t any good.” — Helen Oyeyemi Copy Share Image
