Were I a philosopher, I should write a philosophy of toys, showing that nothing else in life need to be taken seriously, and that Christmas Day in the company of children is one of the few occasions on which men become entirely alive.

There are two sorts of curiosity - the momentary and the permanent. The momentary is concerned with the odd appearance on the surface of things. The permanent is attracted by the amazing and consecutive life that flows on beneath the surface of things.

A boy in love is not mainly a calf but a poet.

The belief in the possibility of a short decisive war appears to be one of the most ancient and dangerous of human illusions.

It is the custom when praising a Russian writer to do so at the expense of all other Russian writers.

Chekhov will seek out the key situation in the life of a cabman or a charwoman, and make them glow for a brief moment in the tender light of his sympathy.

A cat is only technically an animal, being divine.