“I used to think it was possible for an artist to alter the inner life of the culture. Now bomb-makers and gunmen have taken that territory.”

“The letters released something, maybe a sense that he was not alone, that the world was a place where travelers in language could know the same things.”

“Do you know why I believe in the novel? Its a democratic shout. Anybody can write a great novel, one great novel, almost any amateur off the street. I believe this, George. Some nameless drudge, so...”

“When a writer doesnt show his face, he becomes a local symptom of Gods famous reluctance to appear.”

“Sexuality is not meant to be this way - an honest, consensual expression in which a girl might take an active role when she feels good and ready and not one minute before. No. Sexual desire is mean...”

“Michael, some people are just confused about their sexuality, trying to come to terms with it. There are others who are bisexual too; it doesnt mean she was trying to deceive you. She must have jus...”

“Youth, it appeared, was full of illusions as to how much sexual energy two people might have to spare while hiking forty or so kilometers a day, concussed, stunned, diseased, on poor food and littl...”