The Soil Of A Man’s Heart Is

Reading A Good Long Novel Is In Many Ways Like Having A Long And Satisfying Affair

Writers Must Be Fair And Remember Even Bad Guys (most Of Them, Anyway) See Themselves As Good—they Are The Heroes Of Their Own Lives. Giving Them A Fair Chance As Characters Can Create Some Interesting Shades Of Gray—and Shades Of Gray Are Also A Part Of Life.

You Know, Small Children Take It As A Matter Of Course That Things Will Change Every Day And Grown-ups Understand That Things Change Sooner Or Later And Their Job Is To Keep Them From Changing As Long As Possible. It’s Only Kids In High School Who Are Convinced They’re Never Going To Change. There’s Always Going To Be A Pep Rally And There’s Always Going To Be A Spectator Bus, Somewhere Out There In Their Future.

What I Tell Kids Is Don't Get Mad (about Censorship) Get Even. Run, Don't Walk, To The First Library You Can Find, And Read What They're Trying To Keep Out Of Your Eyes. Read What They're Trying To Keep Out Of Your Brains. Because That's Exactly What You Need To Know.

Calling It A Simple Schoolgirl Crush Was Like Saying A Rolls-royce Was A Vehicle With Four Wheels, Something Like A Hay-wagon. She Did Not Giggle Wildly And Blush When She Saw Him, Nor Did She Chalk His Name On Trees Or Write It On The Walls Of The Kissing Bridge. She Simply Lived With His Face In Her Heart All The Time, A Kind Of Sweet, Hurtful Ache. She Would Have Died For Him.