Other people's houses were always fascinating. As soon as you went through the door for the first time, you got the feel of the atmosphere, and so discovered something about the personalities of the people who lived there.

It is better to travel hopefully than to arrive. Arrival often brings nothing but a sense of desolation and disappointment.

Things happen they way they're meant to. There's a pattern and a shape to everything...Nothing happens without a reason...Nothing is impossible...(Page 180).

The greatest gift a parent can leave a child is that parent's own independence.

It was better not to get too close to another person. The closer you got, the more likely you were to get hurt.

They will come, not to paint the bay and the sea and the boots and the moors, but the warmth of the sun and the colour of the wind. A whole new concept. Such stimulation. Such vitality.

I wasn't good enough. I had a little talent but not enough. There is nothing more discouraging than having just a little talent.