“I don’t know how [books] accumulate like that. They’re part rabbit, I think.”

“When history seems to offer no sanctuary for values (when history is assailed by wars and inhuman or immoral public actions), literature can provide a model, often as horrendous as that of history, but one which by virtue of its fictional nature is bound to keep an ironic, parodic, aesthetic or philosophical distance from what is at risk in immediate experience or direct reflection.”

“Siempre me he preguntado si somos nosotros los que engendramos las situaciones, o son éstas las que nos engendran a nosotros.”

“Hay días, repito, en que nuestro pasado se nos presenta desnudo.”

“The name’s Jude Ryder, since I know you’re all but salivating like a rabid dog to know, and I don’t do girlfriends, relationships, flowers or regular phone calls. If that works for you, I think we could work out something special.”

“I definitely like the mystery of not knowing how things will turn out, you know.”

“She’s too hot, even for you. And since she’s got a book, she probably knows how to read, so she’s smart enough to know to avoid guys like you.”