Robert Sheckley

"“The acceptance of indeterminacy is the beginning of wisdom,” the hermit quoted."

"The only thing to think over was Me, of course. And the real problem about Me was, What was I supposed to do? Was I meant to be nothing but God? I had tried the God business and found it too limited. …"

"It takes a particular kind of a man to endure the shattering immensities of space and the paranoid-inducing stresses of threats from the unknown. It takes a man with a large and impervious ego and a c…"

"Reilly was fairly sure he’d survive after death; but he saw no reason to take chances. Also, Mr. Kean says that the very rich, like the very religious, wouldn’t enjoy a hereafter filled with just anyb…"

"Sven had the sensation of discovering a new world, a world no civilized man had ever encountered. He was amazed to discover that weirder customs could be found on Earth than anywhere else in the galax…"

"Words, in the final analysis, are just about as futile as actions, and much less fun."

"Had he been right or was he just another visionary?"

"How nicely you put it! We may rant against fortune and the world, but we are left at the end with the stark proposition: “These are the things which are."