A John Updike is a once-in-a-generation phenomenon, if that generation is lucky: so comfortable in so many genres, the same lively, generous intelligence suffusing all he did.

I tend to foster drama via bleakness. If I want the reader to feel sympathy for a character, I cleave the character in half, on his birthday. And then it starts raining. And he's made of sugar.

What I regret most in my life are failures of kindness.

What I regret most in my life are failures of kindness. Those moments when another human being was there, in front of me, suffering, and I responded . . . sensibly. Reservedly. Mildly.

Do those things that incline you toward the big questions, and avoid the things that would reduce you and make you trivial.

Developing our sympathetic compassion is not only possible but the only reason for us to be here on earth.

According to me, your life is going to be a gradual process of becoming kinder and more loving. Hurry up. Speed it along. Start right now.

It's a big world, and I really like it.

Character is that sum total of moments we can't explain.

The generalizing writer is like the passionate drunk, stumbling into your house mumbling: I know I'm not being clear, exactly, but don't you kind of feel what I'm feeling?

Kindness, it turns out, is hard - it starts out all rainbows and puppy dogs, and expands to include . . . well, EVERYTHING.

Flaming enthusiasm, backed by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success.

I've found out so much about electricity that I've reached the point where I understand nothing and can explain no

A father knows his child's heart, as only a child can know his fathers.

I never use the word 'hero' in sports. Hero is way above 'star.' I save 'star' for sports. Sports is entertainment that's all it is.

Russia should support globalization. The Internet can develop in Russia in a very speedy way.

True realism, materialist realism lies in the search for the expression of forms faithful to their content. But there is no content detached from human interest.

I believe that every artist has his or her own vision of the world; our job as artists is to find and express that vision. The most important thing is to keep exploring, yourself and your materials.

I think that we are already making steps toward mapping out the brain so we can identify the chemical patterns that create and store memory.

Wine is a successful effort to translate the perishable into the permanent.

Climate change is the greatest threat to human rights in the 21st century.