In poetic thought, the role of the subconscious is played by euphony.

There's nothing as dear as the sight of ruins.

What's happening in Russia is devoid of autobiographical interest for me. Maybe it's egocentric. Whatever it is, feel free to use it.

I am quite prepared to die here [in NY]. It doesn't matter at all. I don't know better places, or perhaps if I do I am not prepared to make a move.

There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them.

I don't want to dive into that mud slide, which is what I consider the literary process.

In the end, like the Almighty Himself, we make everything in our image, for want of a more reliable model; our artifacts tell more about ourselves than our confessions.