Criticism is a misconception: we must read not to understand others but to understand ourselves.

To provoke dreams of terror in the slumber of prosperity has become the moral duty of literature.

Ernst Fischer

A chronicle is very different from history proper.

Howard Nemerov

I plead with you--never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, and never become discouraged. Be not afraid.

Pope John Paul II

Only those live who do good.

Leo Tolstoy

That is why embittered people find heroes and madmen a perennial source of fascination, for they have no fear of life or death. Both heroes and madmen are indifferent to danger and will forge ahead regardless of what other people say.

Paulo Coelho

Will not a tiny speck very close to our vision blot out the glory of the world, and leave only a margin by which we see the blot?

George Eliot

Self-knowledge can be painful, but not half so damaging as self-ignorance.

Orson Scott Card

I love Richard Yates, his work, and the novel, Revolutionary Road. It's a devastating novel.

Michael Chabon

I believe that everyone should have a dream and believe in it. Make it real, bring it to life. You'll never regret trying. Trying is what strengthens your heart and delivers courage. Once you believe in yourself, nothing can stop you.

Richard Denney

Year after year, President Bush has broken his campaign promises on college aid. And year after year, the Republican leadership in Congress has let him do it.

Sherrod Brown

My mom would take me to restaurants, and the first thing I'd ask for would be a pen and a napkin, and I'd sketch shoes and shoes and shoes.

Alexander Wang

Traveling in other countries is especially fun because others often attribute your differences to the less-stigmatizing idea that you're like this only because you're a foreigner.

Michael John Carley