“In the end, your past is not my past and your truth is not my truth and your solution - is not my solution.”

“Cos if it's encyclopedias we've got enough, like, information... and if it's God, you've got the wrong house.”

“It's still easier to find the correct Hoover bag than to find one pure person, one pure faith, on the globe.”

“We are split people. For myself, half of me wishes to sit quietly with legs crossed, letting the things that are beyond my control wash over me. But the other half wants to fight a holy war. Jihad!...”

“When the male organ of a man stands erect, two thirds of his intelect go away. And one third of his religion.”

“More silence; children's silence, so desperately desired by adults yet eerie when it finally occurs.”

“I am a person before I am anything else. I never say I am a writer. I never say I am an artist...I am a person who does those things.”

“The point, I decided, wasn't to have the autobiography or even the memories. The point was who I became when I wrote.”

“The willingness to reach inside every part of yourself opens the door to total understanding. You place your entire identity on the line, not just an isolated part. This may sound daunting, but act...”