There was a time when we expected nothing of our children but obedience, as opposed to the present, when we expect everything of them but obedience.

In an age like ours, which is not given to letter-writing, we forget what an important part it used to play in people's lives.

To be misunderstood can be the writer's punishment for having disturbed the reader's peace. The greater the disturbance, the greater the possibility of misunderstanding.

If a book is really good, it deserves to be read again, and if it's great, it should be read at least three times.

Aphorisms are bad for novels. They stick in the reader's teeth.

There are few things more subtly distressing than an inappropriate gift from someone close to you.

In novels, I said, people are transfigured by love. They’re elevated, made different, lifted out of their ordinariness…It’s not so much to ask, I said. I just want love to live up to its publicity.