We are like a woman with a difficult pregnancy. We have to rebuild the social classes in Egypt, and we must change the way things were.

It's a most distressing affliction to have a sentimental heart and a skeptical mind.

I found myself in a sea in which the waves of joy and sorrow were clashing against each other.

The Arab world also won the Nobel with me. I believe that international doors have opened, and that from now on, literate people will consider Arab literature also. We deserve that recognition.

Excessive concern with religion seems to me a last resort for people who have been exhausted by life.

As for life's tragedies, our love will defeat them. Love is the most effective cure. In the crevices of disasters, happiness lies like a diamond in a mind, so let us instill in ourselves the wisdom of love.

Happy is he who can give himself up.