A loud voice is not always angry; a soft voice not always to be dismissed; and a well-placed silence can be the indisputable last word.

The right woman is the one you can live with, not the one in your head.

A myth is more powerful - and more lasting - than reality.

black isn't beautiful and it isn't ugly - black is! It's not kinky hair and it's not straight hair - it just is.

One should be able to return to the first sentence of a novel and find the resonances of the entire work.

Not only is your story worth telling, but it can be told in words so painstakingly eloquent that it becomes a song.

It's as if I've arrived in a place where it's all spirit and no body -- an overwhelming sense of calm . . . I actually began to feel blessed.