the lesson of Buffett was: To succeed in a spectacular fashion you had to be spectacularly unusual.

They [some countries] borrowed money to go acquire things, Indian power plants and Danish newspapers and British soccer teams. And they did it willy-nilly, and they themselves a story, that Icelandic history and culture and DNA leaves us very well-suited to being investment bankers.

When you're trying to create a career as a writer, a little delusional thinking goes a long way.

In Bakersfield, California, a Mexican strawberry picker with an income of $14,000 and no English was lent every penny he needed to buy a house for $724,000.

My characters are actually usually pretty smart and admirable.

Book tours are almost designed to beat out of an author any affection he has for his book.

My judgement is not good when I am on a book tour. I am not thinking about it that much. What happens is I will go back home. I have a 4-year-old and a 1-year-old and a wife who is now taking care of them who is wondering where her husband is.