Society had grown cruel. People who felt they were unwanted or unwelcome in their own country, reacted with aggression. There was no such thing as meaningless violence. Every violent act had a meaning for the person who committed it. Only when you dared accept this truth could you hope to turn society in another direction.

It’s only when we can work with something that brings out our strengths that we’re of any real use.

One of the agonies of being an author is to know when to stop writing.

For me Oliver Twist is a political novel. It is a furious critique of the treatment of orphans and poor children who were forced to spend their early lives in ghastly institutions.

We only have the past that we have. Not all of our deeds were incorrect.

The stories I create are never as awful as reality.

He was so excessively polite that Wallendar suspected he had endured many humiliations in his life.