Why must I have the Piglet?' 'Because you are the best.' 'I do not understand.' 'Teach him.' 'And who teaches me?' ' As an officer, my lord, you will have many men under your command and not all will be gifted. You must learn to use each man to his best advantage.

David Gemmell

Categorized in : Men Piglet Use

Do not speak badly of yourself, for the warrior that is inside you hears your words and is lessened by them.

David Gemmell

warrior speak

Nothing of real worth can ever be bought. Love, friendship, honour, valour, respect. All these things have to be earned.

David Gemmell

friendship-love respect real

A warrior feeds his body well; he trains it; works on it. Where he lacks knowledge, he studies. But above all he must believe. He must believe in his strength of will, of purpose, of heart and soul.

David Gemmell

heart meaningful believe

Man is capable of greatness, love, nobility, compassion. Yet never forget that his capacity for evil is infinite. It is a sad truth, boy, that if you sit now and think of the worst tortures that could ever be inflicted on another human being, they will already have been practiced somewhere. If there is one sound that follows the march of humanity, it is the scream.

David Gemmell

greatness men boys

Never violate a woman, nor harm a child. Do not lie, cheat or steal. These things are for lesser men. Protect the weak against the evil strong. And never allow thoughts of gain to lead you into the persuit of evil.

David Gemmell

strong lying children

May all your dreams but one come true, for what is life without a dream?

David Gemmell

what-is-life dream may

I make little distinction between those who commit evil and those who stand by and do nothing.

David Gemmell

atheism evil fear

There's no shame in fear. But understand this - the coward is ruled by fear, while the hero rides it like a wild stallion.

David Gemmell

coward hero fear

Heroes are people who face down their fears. It is that simple. A child afraid of the dark who one day blows out the candle; a women terrified of the pain of childbirth who says, 'It is time to become a mother'. Heroism does not always live on the battlefield.

David Gemmell

pain mother children

Love is a mystery. We embrace it where we can. Mostly we do not choose whom we love. It just happens. A voice speaks to us, in ways the ears cannot hear. We recognize a beauty the eye does not see. We experience a change in our hearts that no voice can describe.

David Gemmell

eye heart love-is

Fear is an aid to the warrior. It is a small fire burning. It heats the muscles, making us stronger. Panic comes when the fire is out of control, consuming all courage and pride.

David Gemmell

warrior pride fire

I have discovered in my long life that there are many words and phrases which have more power than any spell of magick. The most well-known of these is, of course, I love you. But by far the most deadly is, if only. For these two words can strip a man's strength, his courage and his confidence. They become the father of regret and anguish and pain.

David Gemmell

regret pain father

Many fantasy novels - 'Lord of the Rings', for instance, or 'Lavondyss' by Robert Holdstock - are beautifully written. Geoff Ryman's 'The Child Garden' is exquisite and utterly beguiling. Mervyn Peake's 'Gormenghast' trilogy is an astonishing piece of multi-faceted storytelling. So quality of writing does not condemn the genre.

David Gemmell

garden writing children

Be at peace, my friend. One thing I have learnt about Death is that his bark is worse than his bite.

David Gemmell

bark my-friends bites

We make choices everyday, some of them good, some of them bad. And - if we are strong enough - we live with the consequences.

David Gemmell

everyday choices strong

A man's strength is ultimately born of his knowledge of his own weakness.

David Gemmell

born weakness men

I underestimated you, woman." ... "The cry of men down the ages.

David Gemmell

cry age men

I may be stupid, as you say, to believe in honour and friendship and loyalty without price. But these are virtues to be cherished, for without them we are no more than beasts roaming the land.

David Gemmell

loyalty stupid believe

Evil lives in a pit. If you want to fight it, you must climb down into the slime to do so. White cloaks show the dirt more thank black, and silver tarnishes.

David Gemmell

fighting evil white

Not one of the creatures of blood can escape death. We all face it, and succumb to it. It follows us like a dark shadow. Yet if we live in terror of it, then we do not live at all. Yes we are born alone, and yes we will die alone. But in between, Tae, we live. We know joy.

David Gemmell

dark joy blood