--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I had to choose between a relative and…" description: "\"If I had to choose between a relative and a good story, I would take the story.\" — Isabel Allende" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c43/isabel-allende-266_between_if-i-had-to-choose-between-a-relative-an_3102008.jpg" --- # If I had to choose between a relative and a good story, I… ![“If I had to choose between a relative and a good story, I would take the story.” quote by Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c43/isabel-allende-266_between_if-i-had-to-choose-between-a-relative-an_3102008.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c43/isabel-allende-266_between_if-i-had-to-choose-between-a-relative-an_3102008.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c43/isabel-allende-266_between_if-i-had-to-choose-between-a-relative-an_3102008.jpg) > “If I had to choose between a relative and a good story, I would take the story.” [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Choosing a story over a relative highlights the power of narrative to shape identity and legacy. **In simple terms:** Stories matter more than kin. Key Takeaway Prioritize meaningful narratives. Themes storytelling legacy choice Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - family gatherings - writing workshops - teaching - media production Key Concepts narrative identity cultural memory Questions to Reflect On - What story defines you? - How do stories influence relationships? A Different Perspective Stories can be unreliable or biased. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Good story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-story/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) ## Related quotes > [Acquiring a dog may be the only opportunity a human ever has to choose a relative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mordecai-wyatt-johnson/acquiring-a-dog-may-be-the-only-opportunity-a-human-ever-has-to/) [Mordecai Wyatt Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mordecai-wyatt-johnson/) > [Wakolda or The German Doctor is a very intimate story. It is the story of a teenage girl and the way she falls in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucia-puenzo/wakolda-or-the-german-doctor-is-a-very-intimate-story-it-is-the-story/) [Lucia Puenzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucia-puenzo/) > [“He has a story. A story worth more than my own beating heart. He has a name. A name that — if it were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-g-night/he-has-a-story-a-story-worth-more-than-my-own-beating-heart-he-has-a/) [S.G. Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-g-night/) > [My life story is the story of everyone I've ever met.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/my-life-story-is-the-story-of-everyone-i-ve-ever-met/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [“This will become the story of a young woman, Karin Weinbrenner. Her story is not mine, but sometimes her story feels like the armature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-behrens/this-will-become-the-story-of-a-young-woman-karin-weinbrenner-her/) [Peter Behrens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-behrens/) > [What makes a story a story is that something changes. Internal, external, small or large, trivial or of earth-shattering importance. Doesn't matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-monette/what-makes-a-story-a-story-is-that-something-changes-internal/) [Sarah Monette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-monette/) > [“It was a story to tell myself, a promise. Saying out loud, "You're never going to touch me again" - that was a piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/it-was-a-story-to-tell-myself-a-promise-saying-out-loud-you-re-never/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [“If you don't turn your life into a story, you just become a part of someone else's story." "And what if your story doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/if-you-don-t-turn-your-life-into-a-story-you-just-become-a-part-of/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [He made a story for all of them, a story to give them strength. The words of the story poured out of his mouth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-marmon-silko/he-made-a-story-for-all-of-them-a-story-to-give-them-strength-the/) [Leslie Marmon Silko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-marmon-silko/) > [“She wishes that it were true, all of it. That it were more than just a story. That is was their story.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-e-smith/she-wishes-that-it-were-true-all-of-it-that-it-were-more-than-just-a/) [Jennifer E. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-e-smith/) > [Storyless is not abstract. Two dancers on the stage are enough material for a story; for me, they are already a story in themselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-balanchine/storyless-is-not-abstract-two-dancers-on-the-stage-are-enough/) [George Balanchine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-balanchine/) > [I had always felt life first as a story: and if there is a story there is a story-teller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-had-always-felt-life-first-as-a-story-and-if-there-is-a-story-there/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [And it's interesting, but I'm always interested in the story behind the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maximilian-schell/and-it-s-interesting-but-i-m-always-interested-in-the-story-behind/) [Maximilian Schell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maximilian-schell/) > [“My daughter, people are only used to seeing the glorified in a story, because a story is only a tiny, tiny piece of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darryl-steven-markowitz/my-daughter-people-are-only-used-to-seeing-the-glorified-in-a-story/) [Darryl Steven Markowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darryl-steven-markowitz/) > [And the Bible is not primarily a book of history. It is "His story," the story of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-rogers/and-the-bible-is-not-primarily-a-book-of-history-it-is-his-story-the/) [Adrian Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-rogers/) ## More by Isabel Allende > [“I am happier when I love than when I am loved. I adore my husband, my son, and my grandchildren, my mother, my dog,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-am-happier-when-i-love-than-when-i-am-loved-i-adore-my-husband-my/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [Having a point to start is important. You know that when you decide to write something it's like a commitment. It's like falling in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/having-a-point-to-start-is-important-you-know-that-when-you-decide-to/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [Music is a wind that blows away the years, memories, and fear, that crouching animal I carry inside me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/music-is-a-wind-that-blows-away-the-years-memories-and-fear-that/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [Everybody has losses - it's unavoidable in life. Sharing our pain is very healing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/everybody-has-losses-it-s-unavoidable-in-life-sharing-our-pain-is/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“The writer and the dreamer have so much in common: They can't control the plot, they are always part of the story or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/the-writer-and-the-dreamer-have-so-much-in-common-they-can-t-control/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [People think that they will sit down and produce the great American novel in one sitting. It doesn't work that way. This is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/people-think-that-they-will-sit-down-and-produce-the-great-american/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“He had a principle: if you lend money and never see the person again, that's money well spent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/he-had-a-principle-if-you-lend-money-and-never-see-the-person-again/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“Catholics form a majority in Chile, although there are more and more Evangelicals and Pentacostals who irritate everyone because they have a direct understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/catholics-form-a-majority-in-chile-although-there-are-more-and-more/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“At times I feel as if I had lived all this before and that I have already written these very words, but I know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/at-times-i-feel-as-if-i-had-lived-all-this-before-and-that-i-have/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [In 2011, I announced that I was going to retire, and my agent panicked. So she says: 'No, no, no. You have to write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/in-2011-i-announced-that-i-was-going-to-retire-and-my-agent-panicked/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [I have lived with passion and in a hurry, trying to accomplish too many things. I never had time to think about my beliefs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-have-lived-with-passion-and-in-a-hurry-trying-to-accomplish-too/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [I'm surrounded by the scene of aging. I myself am in my 70s and not getting any younger. Although I'm very healthy, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-m-surrounded-by-the-scene-of-aging-i-myself-am-in-my-70s-and-not/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [I try to write the kind of books I like to read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-try-to-write-the-kind-of-books-i-like-to-read/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“Intimacy needs time to mature—a shared history, tears shed, obstacles overcome, photographs in an album. It’s a slow-growing plant.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/intimacy-needs-time-to-mature-a-shared-history-tears-shed-obstacles/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [ The idea of the book \["The Japanese Lover"\] came in a conversation that I had with a friend walking in the streets of New… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/the-idea-of-the-book-the-japanese-lover-came-in-a-conversation-that-i/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) [Explore all 552 Isabel Allende quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) ## More Between quotes > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. 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Really painful for me. But that's also a big part of why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banks/my-parents-are-divorced-and-seeing-that-was-really-painful-for-me/) [Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banks/) > [Hebron is a bone of contention between Israeli settlers and the Palestinians in part because Abraham is buried there, in the Tomb of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-korda/hebron-is-a-bone-of-contention-between-israeli-settlers-and-the/) [Michael Korda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-korda/) > [There's overwhelming evidence... circumstantial and otherwise, to suggest a connection between Iraq and al Qaeda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pence/there-s-overwhelming-evidence-circumstantial-and-otherwise-to-suggest/) [Mike Pence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pence/) > [I really think there's no difference between an art piece made by a man and one made by a woman. Is it a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-abramovic/i-really-think-there-s-no-difference-between-an-art-piece-made-by-a/) [Marina Abramovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-abramovic/) > [On the stage, the characters express themselves more through words than images. So the arguments of the characters and the tension between characters -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/on-the-stage-the-characters-express-themselves-more-through-words/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [Close contact between science and the practice of collective farms and State farms creates inexhaustible opportunities for the development of theoretical knowledge, enabling us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trofim-lysenko/close-contact-between-science-and-the-practice-of-collective-farms/) [Trofim Lysenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trofim-lysenko/) > [There's a difference between watching a film and watching a bit of cinema and enjoying a film as a piece of cinema.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-frost/there-s-a-difference-between-watching-a-film-and-watching-a-bit-of/) [Nick Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-frost/) > [I don't differentiate between acting on TV and in films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prachi-desai/i-don-t-differentiate-between-acting-on-tv-and-in-films/) [Prachi Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prachi-desai/) > [I was in Vietnam, and I was exposed to Agent Orange. 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