Thing that was very different for me is that an American child's reading is filled with Americans.

Thing that was very different for me is that an American child's reading is filled with Americans.

The universe had an odd sense of fairness; it took away things one did not want to give up, and then gave things one did not ask for.

I began reading in French. I didn't read in English until high school.

I love James Baldwin essays, but also his novels. I recently read "Another Country." I couldn't believe how ahead of his time he was.

When I was a child, I was reading books filled with people different from me, all French, all foreigners. There was a sense of disconnect between my sense of imagination and the world around me, which I don't think is common for Americans. It forces you to learn to look at the world through other people's eyes.

No one wrote better about the sin of pride, the corruption of power and the redemption of love. I will miss you, Gabriel García Márquez.