People ask without wanting to know.

Hallie and I... were all there was. The image in the mirror that proves you are still here. We had exactly one sister apiece. We grew up knowing the simple arithmetic of scarcity: A sister is more precious than an eye.

I never think that anything I'm writing is bluntly political in any way. I'm not going for commentary.

It is true that I do not speak as well as I can think. But that is true of most people, as nearly as I can tell.

I'm of a fearsome mind to throw my arms around every living librarian who crosses my path, on behalf of the souls they never knew they saved.

I struggle with confidence, every time. I’m never completely sure I can write another book. Maybe my scope is too grand, my questions too hard, surely readers won’t want to follow me here. A novel is like a cathedral, it knocks you down to size when you enter into it.

Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say.