I should have written more. I should have written more during the period when I just liked so much doing the political work in the streets.

Sometimes before people know what they're saying, they already love the language.

I'm really sorry for people growing up right now, because they have some cockeyed idea that they can get by with their eyes closed; the cane they're tapping is money, and that won't take them in the right direction.

In the end, long life is the reward, strength, and beauty.

My family were Russian Jews. They got you to read as soon as you could. And then assumed you would read a lot. People didn't really tell stories but they were good talkers. That's important for a writer, to hear speakers.

It wasn't until I lived in the countryside that I began to understand the life of the countryside and the people in it and trees and water. Just learning about water is an education for a city person.

I've started many novels, and they all ended on page seven.