Nothing smelled so good or danced so well as a birch fire.

The name we give to something shapes our attitude toward it.

To fear is one thing. To let fear grab you by the tail and swing you around is another.

It is not enough to simply teach children to read; we have to give them something worth reading.

Peace is not won by those who fiercely guard their differences, but by those who with open minds and hearts seek out connections.

I love revision. Where else can spilled milk be turned into ice cream?

As much pleasure as young people get from Twittering and texting, there is no way these activities will nourish their minds and spirits the way literature can.

Reading can be a road to freedom or a key to a secret garden, which, if tended, will transform all of life.

As I look back on what I have written, I can see that the very persons who have taken away my time are those who have given me something to say.

Some folks are natural born kickers. They can always find a way to turn disaster into butter.

I love to read. But I loved to read a lot longer than I started to love writing.

Climbing mountains is strength

There is something about hearing your president affirm your humanity that you don't know what effect it has until you hear it.

The gods, my dear simple fellow, are a mere expression coined by vulgar superstition. We frown upon such coinage here.

A good compromise, a good piece of legislation, is like a good sentence; or a good piece of music. Everybody can recognize it. They say, 'Huh. It works. It makes sense.'

Believe me, I didn't think there was some princely family I belonged to.

there are dozens and dozens of ways to be a family ... Family tends to happen.

There are things a man must not do even to save a nation.

It doesn't matter that I can't remember the details any longer: death happened to her. Death happens to all of us.

Even if you only stop and focus on your breathing for a few breaths, or for a minute or two, its very valuable.

On his daughter, Ava: She is a relief from all the stress in my life; everyday she does something new and it is so amazing.