You need to have a reader's sympathy in order to accomplish anything. It's like at a reading, I find it's better to read something funny than to read something tragic. It just goes over better because you have a finite amount of time with somebody. Of course, in a book, you have a lot of time. But you still do want to make a certain impression right when you begin.
Jonathan Safran FoerReality Hunger is more than thought-provoking; it's one of the most beautiful books I've read in a long time.
Jonathan Safran FoerI got incredibly heavy boots about how relatively insignificant life is, and how, compared to the universe and compared to time, it didnโt even matter if I existed at all.
Jonathan Safran FoerHighs and lows make you feel that things matter, but they're nothing." "So what's something?" "Being reliable is something. Being good.
Jonathan Safran FoerWe tried so hard. We were always trying to help each other. But not because we were helpless. He needed to get things for me, just as I needed to get things for him. It gave us purpose. Sometimes I would ask him for something that I did not even want, just to let him get it for me. We spent our days trying to help each other help each other. I would get his slippers. He would make my tea. I would turn up the heat so he could turn up the air conditioner so I could turn up the heat.
Jonathan Safran Foer