There was just a moment when things weren't quite the same, weren't quite as they had always been through the long friendship

He hunched his shoulders and tried to make himself smaller in the seat. He wanted to disappear, to fade away, not to exist.

You eat canned tuna fish and you absorb protein. Then, if you're lucky, someone give you Dover Sole and you experience nourishment. It's the same with books.

Writing is self employment, so you can make your own schedule.

And here in this room, I re-experience the memories again and again it is how wisdom comes and how we shape our future.

I think when you've had success, publishers and reviewers and readers are willing to let you try something new if you've already proven yourself. They're excited about what you're doing, you have people interested in it, and actually waiting for it. It's empowering.

The community of the Giver had achieved at such great price. A community without danger or pain. But also, a community without music, color or art. And books.