“I don't like to complain about life's little ups and downs, but maybe we should talk about it.”

“Write about something you know. Try to leave your readers better off than they were before.”

“Hank is a dog, not a human dressed up in a dog suit. Humans share some of his flaws, but I get my ideas from watching dogs.”

“When time marches on, it steps on your nose and tail, and leaves boot prints down your back.”

“I’ve never been convinced that the sun would come up without me barking.”

“There’s no better way to mess up a good cowdog than to let him discover that goofing off beats the heck out of hard work.”

“My parents placed a high value on reading, starting with the King James Bible, and one whole wall of our living room was filled, floor to ceiling, with books. But I was an outside kid and didn’t have the patience to be a reader. That changed, briefly, when I discovered Tom Sawyer in the fourth grade. That was the one book I truly loved. I read it several times, then read Huckleberry Finn. I was fascinated by the way Twain played with language and used regional dialects. But what amazed me most was that Twain allowed the reader to laugh. Reading didn’t have to be drudgery. Twain didn’t allow it.”