You're breaking out of character, again.

He was feeling buoyant, flexible. He wanted to go jogging. He stood. He couldn't go jogging. He called room service and ordered a basket of breads and pastries.

The key thing is, even if you only have a couple of hours a month, those two hours shoulder-to-shoulder, next to one student, concentrated attention, shining this beam of light on their work, on their thoughts and their self-expression, is going to be absolutely transformative, because so many of the students have not had that ever before.

We are all feeding from each other, all the time, every day.

I think I'm far too hopeful and trusting. That's something I got from my mum.

Books have a unique way of stopping time in a particular moment and saying: Let’s not forget this.

Well, my background is journalism. I don't have any creative-writing experience except for one class I took as a sophomore in college.