The barriers between reality and fiction are softer than we think; a bit like a frozen lake. Hundreds of people can walk across it, but then one evening a thin spot develops and someone falls through; the hole is frozen over by the following morning.

A surfeit of information often hides an untruth,” he said, with annoying clarity.

Mr. McGregor's a nasty piece of work, isn't he? Quite the Darth Vader of children's literature.

Books" - Snell smiled - "are a kind of magic.

Without a yardstick sometimes the high points can be taken for granted.

Apart from the faint odor of ink that pervaded the scene, it might have been real.

Do I have to talk to insane people?" "You're a librarian now. I'm afraid it's mandatory.