I do think it is harder to acknowledge our strengths, or to forgive ourselves and each other for our shortcomings, when there has not been a result we can all agree on. And it is certainly impossible to imagine forgiving the enemy while their animus remains undefeated. Yet war doesn't end with armistice, it only ends with forgiveness and reconciliation.

We leave it up to books and movies to talk about WWII on our behalf.

I think, in common with a lot of novelists, I wasn't the most athletic guy at school.

The Daily Mail can't say 'asylum-seeker' without saying 'foreign criminal' in the same sentence. I'm sure it's practically editorial policy.

So when I say that I am a refugee, you must understand that there is no refuge.

I'm a much better writer for being a father.

If I could not smile, I think my situation would be even more serious.