When well told, a story captured the subtle movement of change. If a novel was a map of a country, a story was the bright silver pin that marked the crossroads.

It was too much work to remember things you might not have again, and so one by one they opened up their hands and let them go.

It's always better to have too much to read than not enough.

Reading fiction is important. It is a vital means of imagining a life other than our own, which in turn makes us more empathetic beings. Following complex story lines stretches our brains beyond the 140 characters of sound-bite thinking, and staying within the world of a novel gives us the ability to be quiet and alone, two skills that are disappearing faster than the polar icecaps.

Keeping people safe is a story we tell ourselves.

I saw that my best work was my most personal work, which is odd, because my fiction is very far afield and has nothing to do with my life.

Coming back is the thing that enables you to see how all the dots in your life are connected.