Writing is alone, but I don't think it's lonely. Ask any writer if they feel lonely when they're writing their book, and I think they'll say no.

Within one's own family money is not the measure of things, unless the person is an absolute Scrooge. Only the most extreme kind of monster would put a price on everything. There are all kinds of other things that we are not supposed to sell - political influence being one of them. We too rarely have public conversations about the common sense of money. We too rarely talk about the human cost of putting some of these economic measures into effect.

If you want what's in the package you should at least know how to get the string off, is what I say.

There's nothing like a shovel full of dirt to encourage literacy.

I've learned quite a lot, over the years, by avoiding what I was supposed to be learning.

I exist in two places, here and where you are.

Better not to invent her in her absence. Better to wait until she's actually here. Then he can make her up as she goes along.