"Eight Days of Luke" was refused by another confused publisher on the grounds that children shouldn't strike matches. When my agent pointed out that David in the book was twelve years old, the publisher said that he was striking matches to summon the devil, then, and this couldn't be allowed.

Learn to drive?" "Never," said Quentin. "My mission in life is to be a passenger.

This is the mythosphere. It's made up of all the stories, theories and beliefs, legends, myths and hopes, that are generated here on Earth. As you can see, it's constantly growing and moving as people invent new tales to tell or find new things to believe. The older strands move out to become these spirals, where things tend to become quite crude and dangerous. They've hardened off, you see.

Hope is the forward-looking part of memory.

Every man in Ingary is scared stiff of her. You ought to know how that feels, Sophie dear.

And indeed if you think you're a genius at something, what you achieve is very much according to your expectations; if you think you're no good, you're not going to get anywhere.

Oh! Polly thought. Why aren't all girls locked up by law the year they turn fifteen? They do such stupid things!