Magic is just a way of saying 'I don't know.'

Be one of the crowd? It went against everything a wizard stood for, and a wizard would not stand for anything if he could sit down for it, but even sitting down, you had to stand out.

Guilt was the grease in which the wheels of the authority turned.

Ninety percent of most magic merely consists of knowing one extra fact.

Thinking. This book contains some. Whether you try it at home is up to you.

Poetic simile was strictly limited to statements like 'his mighty steed was as fleet as the wind on a fairly calm day, say about Force Three,' and any loose talk about a beloved having a face that launched a thousand ships would have to be backed by evidence that the object of desire did indeed look like a bottle of champagne.

You can think and you can fight, but the world's always movin', and if you wanna stay ahead you gotta dance.