All of that loneliness and longing in my heart got transferred into the book Because of Winn-Dixie, I guess.

I was born in Philadelphia and currently live in Minneapolis. I write for both children and adults.

There ain't no way you can hold onto something that wants to go, you understand? You can only love what you got while you got it.

Once upon a time," he said out loud to the darkness. He said these words because they were the best, the most powerful words that he knew and just the saying of them comforted him.

There is nothing sweeter in this sad world than the sound of someone you love calling your name.

When we read together, we connect. Together, we see the world. Together, we see one another.

Reading should not be presented to children as a chore or duty. It should be offered to them as a precious gift.

The undoing is almost always more difficult than the doing.

You must be filled with expectancy. You must be awash in hope. You must wonder who will love you, whom you will love next.

It is important that you say what you mean to say. Time is too short. You must speak the words that matter.

The world is dark, and light is precious. Come closer, dear reader. You must trust me. I am telling you a story.

Focus on what God can do through you.

I envisioned him tied in a chair, an iron arrow pointed at his brow. Ah, the power of positive thinking.

If you possess the basic necessities in life, there is absolutely no reason to feel any sorrows. For there is someone praying that they could have your spot.

Write about only three things: what you love, what you hate, and what you’re deeply conflicted about.

It gets better and better being me.

The amateur is very rare in French literature - as rare as he is common in our own.

Childhood, after all, is not an ending, but rather a state full of potent curiosity.

What I wish more than anything is that I could start getting press about my work as an actor. That is what I do. I'm not a criminal.

Promise, large promise, is the soul of an advertisement.

I want to do something that matters.