I'd hasten to say that the prejudice in Dust City isn't completely analogous to racism in the real world.

People of different ethnicities are definitely not of differing species. Biologically speaking, people are people.

In Japan, it's strange to openly take credit for giving to charity or even to donate publicly.

I believe actual violence scars children much more than violence in storybooks.

Historical atrocities have certainly shown that dehumanizing any group is the first step toward genocide.

If some readers take away the idea that animals deserve better treatment in general, then I certainly won't argue.

I can't say I'm anything like a devoted animal rights activist, but I certainly oppose cruelty to animals.

I always hope that the artwork will complement and enrich a story.

Since I tend to write chronologically, the middle is always the place where the process is most taxing.

Destiny isn't immutable. You can change your fate. But I'd say the only way to do it is with hard, intelligent work and long-term dedication to a goal.

In medieval Europe, childbirth was a leading cause of death. So widowed fathers with children were quite common, meaning stepmothers were equally common.

The White House usually followed the seagull theory of management: fly in, squawk and flap and shit, and fly away.

I almost moved mountains, touched rivers, impressed deserts and motivated skies, but I never made it to your heart.

He [Bloch] was one of those touchy, highly-strung people who cannot bear to have made a blunder, will not admit it to themselves, and whose whole day is ruined by it.

We've got a lot of love here, and for me that's what family is all about.

I'm just thrilled and kind of honored that I still get the chance to do what I love, because that really is the definition of success.

I'm always fearful. … Fear generates in you a huge energy. You can use it. When I feel that mounting fear, I think, 'Oh, yes, there it is!' It's like petrol.

Pressure of opinion a hundred years ago brought about the emancipation of the slaves'.

Cooking is a form of flattery....a mischievous, deceitful, mean and ignoble activity, which cheats us by shapes and colors, by smoothing and draping.

I don't really read a lot. Maybe I should.

Cuz I was never pretty anyway and never cared anything about that.