Mr. Vandemar showed them his teeth, demonstrating his sunny and delightful disposition. It was unquestionably the most horrible thing Richard had ever seen.

Most people don't realize how important librarians are. I ran across a book recently which suggested that the peace and prosperity of a culture was solely related to how many librarians it contained. Possibly a slight overstatement. But a culture that doesn't value its librarians doesn't value ideas and without ideas, well, where are we?

And then he'd tried to become an official Atheist and hadn't got the rock-hard self-satisfied strength of belief even for that.

Children, as I have said, use back ways and hidden paths, while adults take roads and official paths.

In the case of 'Ocean at the End of the Lane,' it's a book about helplessness. It's a book about family, it's a book about being 7 in a world of people who are bigger than you, and more dangerous, and stepping into territory that you don't entirely understand.

I think...that I would rather recollect a life mis-spent on fragile things than spent avoiding moral debt.

Go get your heart broken.