I would come, many years later, to understand why To Kill A Mockingbird is considered an important novel, but when I first read it at 11, I was simply absorbed by the way it evoked the mysteries of childhood, of treasures discovered in trees, and games played with an exotic summer friend.

When we realize that there is never a single story about any place, we regain a kind of paradise.

There are some things that are so unforgivable that they make other things easily forgivable.

She rested her head against his and felt, for the first time, what she would often feel with him: a self-affection. He made her like herself.

I am a strong believer in the ability of human beings to change for the better. I am a strong believer in trying to change what we are dissatisfied with.

The only reason race matters is because of racism.

My grandfather died in the war, my family went through the war, and it affected my parents in really profound ways. I've always wanted to write about that period - in some ways to digest it for myself, something that defined me but that I didn't go through.