--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: These stories were very old, as old as…" description: "\"“These stories were very old, as old as people, and they had survived because they were very powerful indeed. They were the tales that echoed in the he..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/465/john-connolly-1479_bad-thing_these-stories-were-very-old-as-old-as-pe_2309933.jpg" --- # These stories were very old, as old as people, and they… ![“These stories were very old, as old as people, and they had survived because they were very powerful indeed. They were the tales that echoed in the head long after the books that contained them were cast aside. They were both an escape from reality and an alternative reality themselves. They were…” quote by John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/465/john-connolly-1479_bad-thing_these-stories-were-very-old-as-old-as-pe_2309933.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/465/john-connolly-1479_bad-thing_these-stories-were-very-old-as-old-as-pe_2309933.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/465/john-connolly-1479_bad-thing_these-stories-were-very-old-as-old-as-pe_2309933.jpg) > ““These stories were very old, as old as people, and they had survived because they were very powerful indeed. They were the tales that echoed in the head long after the books that contained them were cast aside. They were both an escape from reality and an alternative reality themselves. They were so old, and so strange, that they had found a kind of existence independent of the pages they occupied. The world of the old tales existed parallel to ours, but sometimes the walls separating the two became so thing and brittle that the two worlds started to blend into each other. That was when the trouble started. That was when the bad things came. That was when the Crooked Man began to appear to David.”” [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories persist beyond their pages, shaping reality and blurring the line between fiction and life, leading to danger when the boundaries weaken. **In simple terms:** Stories can become real and cause trouble. Key Takeaway Beware when imagination overtakes reality. Themes imagination danger storytelling reality boundary Mood cautious reflective intrigued Type literary warning psychological When to use this quote - reading - creative writing - psychology - fantasy world‑building - risk assessment Key Concepts mythic influence psychological impact narrative power Questions to Reflect On - How do you distinguish fiction from reality? - When might a story’s influence become harmful? A Different Perspective The power of a story can be limited by critical thinking and context. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-things/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Escape from reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escape-from-reality/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) ## Related quotes > [Real life is not quite as it is in stories. In the old tales, bad things happen, and when the tale has unfolded and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/real-life-is-not-quite-as-it-is-in-stories-in-the-old-tales-bad/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [This country has nothing to fear from the crooked man who fails. We put him in jail. It is the crooked man who succeeds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/this-country-has-nothing-to-fear-from-the-crooked-man-who-fails-we/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Out of timber so crooked as that from which man is made nothing entirely straight can be carved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/out-of-timber-so-crooked-as-that-from-which-man-is-made-nothing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A little bit of one story joins onto an idea from another, and hey presto, . . . not old tales but new ones.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/a-little-bit-of-one-story-joins-onto-an-idea-from-another-and-hey/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The language of the novel differs from the just-the-facts language of the old tales. It's robust and earthy, sometimes even baroque.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marisa-silver/the-language-of-the-novel-differs-from-the-just-the-facts-language-of/) [Marisa Silver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marisa-silver/) > [So we'll live, And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh at gilded butterflies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/so-we-ll-live-and-pray-and-sing-and-tell-old-tales-and-laugh-at-2/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“So we'll live, And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh At gilded butterflies, and hear poor rogues Talk of court news;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/so-we-ll-live-and-pray-and-sing-and-tell-old-tales-and-laugh-at/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [they say in the old tales that when a man and woman exchange looks the way we did, their spirits mingle. their gaze is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chitra-banerjee-divakaruni/they-say-in-the-old-tales-that-when-a-man-and-woman-exchange-looks/) [Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chitra-banerjee-divakaruni/) > [Why are so many of us enspelled by myths and folk stories in this modern age? Why do we continue to tell the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terri-windling/why-are-so-many-of-us-enspelled-by-myths-and-folk-stories-in-this/) [Terri Windling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terri-windling/) > [“We shouldn't be here at all, if we'd known more about it before we started. But I suppose it's often that way. The brave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien/we-shouldn-t-be-here-at-all-if-we-d-known-more-about-it-before-we/) [J.R.R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien/) > [“But I suppose it’s often that way. The brave things in the old tales and songs, Mr. Frodo: adventures, as I used to call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien/but-i-suppose-it-s-often-that-way-the-brave-things-in-the-old-tales/) [J.R.R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien/) > [“I hate your stupid stories." The old woman smiled at him toothlessly. "My stories? No, my little lord, not mine. 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How old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hilburn/i-was-getting-calls-in-1970-from-teenagers-little-girls-and-they-d/) [Robert Hilburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hilburn/) > [A Woman Never Say: I love hearing stories about your old girlfriends, tell me more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/a-woman-never-say-i-love-hearing-stories-about-your-old-girlfriends/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [The great stories are always the old ones - they never change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-lester/the-great-stories-are-always-the-old-ones-they-never-change/) [Adrian Lester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-lester/) ## More by John Connolly > [There is sometimes a feeling in crime fiction that good writing gets in the way of story. I have never felt that way. 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Aside”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/she-was-a-round-curvy-woman-who-for-parker-brought-to-mind-a-figure/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“Prepare for the worst and you won’t be disappointed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/prepare-for-the-worst-and-you-won-t-be-disappointed/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“When Louis relaxed, it was an indication that a threat was at hand and he was preparing to act, as when an archer releases…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/when-louis-relaxed-it-was-an-indication-that-a-threat-was-at-hand-and/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“The presence in the living room called to her, summoning her in a hundred voices and none, a great dissonant harmony alien yet familiar,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/the-presence-in-the-living-room-called-to-her-summoning-her-in-a/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“Warraner would rather have been the king of nothing than the prince of something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/warraner-would-rather-have-been-the-king-of-nothing-than-the-prince/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“had been like wandering into the wrong carnival sideshow, the kind that left one feeling sick and slightly soiled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/had-been-like-wandering-into-the-wrong-carnival-sideshow-the-kind/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“think you just like tethering goats.” “Well, be sure to tell me when your rope begins”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/think-you-just-like-tethering-goats-well-be-sure-to-tell-me-when-your/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“David could tell, by looking at her face as she read, whether or not the story contained in the book was living inside her,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/david-could-tell-by-looking-at-her-face-as-she-read-whether-or-not/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“Before she came ill, David's mother would often tell him that stories were alive. 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It was the reason they forced themselves from their world into ours.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/stories-wanted-to-be-read-david-s-mother-would-whisper-they-needed-it/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [She was plump, with dyed red hair and a face so caked with cosmetics that the floor of the Amazon jungle probably saw more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/she-was-plump-with-dyed-red-hair-and-a-face-so-caked-with-cosmetics/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) [Explore all 232 John Connolly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) ## More Bad thing quotes > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. 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I've run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/i-think-the-people-i-talk-about-are-generally-so-stupid-that-they-don/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [One thing I always tell players is that there are three bad things: Nothing good happens after midnight, nothing good happens when you're around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-saban/one-thing-i-always-tell-players-is-that-there-are-three-bad-things/) [Nick Saban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-saban/) > [I'm not going to pretend that bad things don't happen. I just hope my daughter has enough understanding that when they do, just give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-krasinski/i-m-not-going-to-pretend-that-bad-things-don-t-happen-i-just-hope-my/) [John Krasinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-krasinski/) > [I've heard some pretty bad things in my life. 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