I had known there had been a serial killer on Mount Tamalpais, and it felt so incongruous in such a beautiful, peaceful spot.

She felt everything too deeply, it was like the world was too much for her.

It's not only children who grow. Parents do too.

A person who deserves my loyalty receives it.

The big dramas that fascinate me are the quiet ones that happen behind closed doors in so-called ordinary families.

The painter who feels obligated to depict his subjects as uniformly beautiful or handsome and without flaws will fall short of making art.

At Home in the World is the story of a young woman, raised in some difficult circumstances, and how she survives. It tells a story of redemption, not victimhood.

To share our stories is not only a worthwhile endeavor for the storyteller, but for those who hear our stories and feel less alone because of it.

My job is writing. I get paid to do it. When was the last time you heard someone challenge a doctor for making money off of cancer?

The portrait of my parents is a complicated one, but lovingly drawn.

Those who rhapsodize about the ease and joy of childhood have perhaps forgotten what it's like to be 12 years old.

Leadership is a choice. It is not a rank.

Marriage converts a player into a polygamist.

When it comes to war, we focus more on the mainstream coverage of the event, rather than the event itself. People dying is never funny. Protest puppets are always funny.

Success is uncommon, not to be found by the common man. I'm looking for uncommon people.

All I have to be thankful for in this world is that I was sitting down when my garter busted.

Without friendship and the openness and trust that go with it, skills are barren and knowledge may become an unguided missile.

Several things about Reagan are unusual in a public man. He was not a typical politician at all, but a private man in public life.

Let the force of arms give place to law and justice.

Be persistent. Understand the ways in which your hard work is going to be necessary to achieve the goals that you want.

Fish are complex beings who choose mates, use words to communicate, build nests, cooperate with one another to find food, have long-term memories, and use tools.