“You are more likely to find three TVs inside a randomly selected house than you are to find a single book that is or was not read to pass an exam, to please God, or to be a better cook.”

“If difficult times teach us the most important lessons, we should then learn to read difficult books.”

“In some cases, ignorance is deadlier than poverty.”

“It had never occurred to me that real life might offer the smallest portion of the happiness I found in reading.”