The only way you can be universal is to be sure you are very specifically local.

Things happen once only and are never repeated, never return. Except in memory.

He feared at certain moments that the only new knowledge he would take away from this country was learning how to swim and use the telephone.

All of them would understand, as he did now, that he had crossed a line in himself, he had left their world behind, the decent world of tea parties and suburban witticisms.

What he sensed more than anything else was kindness – a kindness of a human and immediate sort. It was surprising how very radical this simple emotion could be.

The Indians were inside their bodies, he decided, in a way that the British were not. His own flesh impeded his spirit.

I am happy to see you, Maso

Goldie was a believer in the imperial project, which is to say, in the civilising power of social progress.

It is always an attractive moment when curiosity takes hold.

A silence followed, while the two men contemplated dying for love.

What I don’t understand about your type is that you want to emulate the other side. You kick up such a commotion about being different, and all you want is to be the same.

Please let's change subject, as despite the alliteration, I don't think Politics and Puddings go together.

Zoe's mom liked to send silly postcards that made her laugh, but they usually dwindled as the summer wore on.

Oh, I have a habit of letting myself be lectured on the things I know best. I like to see if they are understood in the same way I understand; for there are many ways of knowing the same thing

We're at the point now where the challenge isn't how to communicate effectively with e-mail; it's ensuring that you spend your time on the e-mail that matters most.

At the centre of every human being is a God-shaped vacuum which can only be filled by Jesus Christ.

If the wicked flourish and the fittest survive, Nature must be the god of rascals.

Her beauty might fascinate men, but it was difficult to charm them when she stood mute. . . .

Every Warrior of the Light has failed in his spiritual duties.

Vital to quality of life is the ability to work together, learn from each other, and help each other grow.

So Janie waited a bloom time, and a green time and an orange time.