I think I became a Catholic to annoy my father.

We tell ourselves that God is dead, when what we mean is that God is Dad, and we wish him dead.

I'm not saying all publishers have to be literary, but some interest in books would help.

I don't write books inadvertently.

One symptom of his (Hitler) being strangely at variance with reality, or the nature of things,was his gift for wearing inappropriate of ludicrous clothing...When he was supposed to be starting a militaristic revolution he was wearing evening dress and an ill-fitting black tailcoat...and his army medals.

I'm like Jane Austen - I work on the corner of the dining table.

Brain power improves by brain use, just as our bodily strength grows with exercise. And there is no doubt that a large proportion of the female population, from school days to late middle age, now have very complicated lives indeed.