Something in me was always watching life from the outside, permanently obsessed with the notion of belonging vs. not-belonging [to a group]. It did not make for a happy childhood, but it was excellent training for a writer.

We agreed with him in principal - we were little scientists, born and bred. But children robbed of love will dwell on magic.

Culture is a slingshot moved by the force of its past

In fact, one of the things that I really love about literary fiction is that it's one of the few kinds of writing that doesn't tell us what to think or what to buy or what to wear. We're surrounded by advertising.

Wars and elections are both too big and too small to matter in the long run. The daily work - that goes on, it adds up.

I considered her my ally, because, like me, she was imperfect.

the conspicuous consumption of limited resources has yet to be accepted widely as a spiritual error, or even bad manners