The price we have paid for expecting to be so much more than... - Alain de Botton

"One rarely falls in love without being as much attracted to what is interestingly wrong with someone as what is objectively healthy."

"I passionately believe that's it's not just what you say that counts, it's also how you say it - that the success of your argument critically depends on your manner of presenting it."

"The moment we cry in a film is not when things are sad but when they turn out to be more beautiful than we expected them to be."

"Don't despair: despair suggests you are in total control and know what is coming. You don't - surrender to events with hope."

"The arrogance that says analysing the relationship between reasons and causes is more important than writing a philosophy of shyness or sadness or friendship drives me nuts. I can't accept that."