“Children, Hadley thinks to herself, children are more civilised than this gang on the sauce.”

“But writers and their woes: they couldn't be parted. Not for anything.”

“She kissed him but he didn't seem to recognize it.”

“The hangover: such a cure, she thinks, for overthinking.”

“Talents too many, not enough of any.”

“The longer I don't write, the more I hurt.”

“Some experiences are universal. A girl is a girl whether she lives in West Omaha or Sweet Valley. Books are often far more than books.”

“A half-read book is a half-finished love affair.”

“The love of learning, the sequestered nooks,And all the sweet serenity of books”

“Reading a book is an intimate experience that can change people's lives in profound ways. It also changes the life of its author.”

“There was a day when writers actually read," he grumbles. "They could quote Keats and Socrates. Now anyone with a keyboard and a fifth-grade education can call themselves a writer.”

“Every story is a ride to some place and time other than here and now. Buried in an armchair, reclined on a couch, prostrate on your bed, or glued to your desk, you can go places and travel through ...”