Satire is a lesson, parody is a game.

Between the wolf in the tall grass and the wolf in the tall story there is a shimmering go-between. That go-between, that prism, is the art of literature.

Oh, my Lolita, I have only words to play with!

The compensation for a death sentence is the knowledge of the exact hour when one is to die. A great luxury, but one that is well earned.

As to the rest, I am no more guilty of imitating 'real life' than'real life' is responsible for plagiarizing me.

All great novels are great fairy tales.

A major writer combines these three - storyteller, teacher, enchanter - but it is the enchanter in him that predominates and makes him a major writer.