The greatest mercy, I have often thought, of the Mediterranean coast lies in its mosquitoes. Did we not suffer from their unwelcome attention, we could not bear our holidays to end.

it is the brevity of life which makes it tolerable; its experiences have value because they have an end.

What with the reviews of critics, the sarcasms of one's friends, the reproaches of one's own taste, there's precious little peace after publishing a book.

The things that one most wants to do are the things that are probably most worth doing.

The only difficulty is to know what bits to choose and what to leave out. Novel-writing is not creation, it is selection.

Life flows on over death as water closes over a stone dropped into a pool. ... Fate is certain; death is certain; but the courage and nobility of men and women matter more than these.

Oh, time betrays us. Time is the great enemy.