The craft of writing is the art of penetrating other minds with the figures that are in your own mind.

Lennie said quietly, "It ain't no lie. We're gonna do it. Gonna get a little place an' live on the fatta the lan'.

I have never smuggled anything in my life. Why, then, do I feel an uneasy sense of guilt on approaching a customs barrier?

Syntax, my lad. It has been restored to the highest place in the republic.

But Doc had one mental habit he could not get over. When anyone asked a question, Doc thought he wanted to know the answer.

To a man born without conscience, a soul-stricken man must seem ridiculous. To a criminal, honesty is foolish. You must not forget that a monster is only a variation, and that to a monster the norm is monstrous.

Perhaps it takes courage to raise children.