Of all my Russian books, the defense contains and diffuses the greatest 'warmth' which may seem odd seeing how supremely abstract Chess is supposed to be

Knowing you have something good to read before bed is among the most pleasurable of sensations.

And the rest is rust and stardust.

Do not be angry with the rain; it simply does not know how to fall upwards.

Mind you, sometimes the angels smoke, hiding it with their sleeves, and when the archangel comes, they throw the cigarettes away: that’s when you get shooting stars.

Curiosity is insubordination in its purest form.

Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta.

The writer's job is to get the main character up a tree, and then once they are up there, throw rocks at them.

There are aphorisms that, like airplanes, stay up only while they are in motion.

I think it is all a matter of love: the more you love a memory, the stronger and stranger it is.

Loneliness as a situation can be corrected, but as a state of mind it is an incurable illness.

When you love people, you want what's best for them, and sometimes what's best for them isn't you.

Experience teaches that the time to buy stocks is when their price is unduly depressed by temporary adversity. In other words, they should be bought on a bargain basis or not at all.

I think good theaters are really important. They allow you to exist in a space with other people.

Well, there doesn't seem anything else for an ex-President to do but to go into the country and raise big pumpkins.

Action is character.

It is true that money cannot buy happiness but it does make it possible for you to enjoy the best that the world has to offer.

Never perform for your family. They either laugh too hard or not at all.

My mom means a lot to me. My mom gave up everything. She moved with me and believed in me. She is awesome.

There is no harm in repeating a good thing.

All good ideas start out as bad ideas, that's why it takes so long.