I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth: the mythic truth about human nature in general, the particular truth about those life-communities that define our own identity, and the most specific truth of all: our own self-story. Fiction, because it is not about someone who lived in the real world, always has the possibility of being about oneself. --From the Introduction

Oh, I'll live Ender's life, too. It's so much more interesting than my own." ~Val

Your dream is a good one. [. . .] The desire that is the very root of life itself: To grow until all the space you can see is part of you, under your control. It's the desire for greatness.

Science fiction is about what could be but isn't; fantasy is about what couldn't be.

No human being, when you understand his desires, is worthless. No one's life is nothing.

Most victories came from instantly exploiting your enemy's stupid mistakes, and not from any particular brilliance in your own plan.

What a waste of time to be posthumously famous.