Authors, she soon decided, were probably best met within the pages of their novels, and were as much creatures of the reader's imagination as the characters in their books. Nor did they seem to think one had done them a kindness by reading their writings. Rather they had done one the kindness by writing them.

Of course my standards are out of date! That's why they're called standards.

Were we closer to the ground as children, or is the grass emptier now?

It [Cambridge] wasn't a holy grail in the sense that I'd never been to Cambridge. But then, when I did go, the contrast between Leeds, which was very black and sooty in those days, and Cambridge, which seemed like something out of a fairystory, in the grip of a hard frost, was just wonderful.

Mark my words, when a society has to resort to the lavatory for its humour, the writing is on the wall.

No mention of God. They keep Him up their sleeves for as long as they can, vicars do. They know it puts people off.

All the effort went into getting there and then I had nothing left. I thought I'd got somewhere, then I found I had to go on.