“The alternative to thinking in evolutionary terms is not to think at all.”

“The human mind treats a new idea the same way the body treats a strange protein; it rejects it.”

“Librarians are almost always very helpful and often almost absurdly knowledgeable. Their skills are probably underestimated and largely underemployed.”

“But Philippa was hardly listening. "It's a riddle," she declared finally, pointing to the card in the strange little round window. "I think that if we answer the riddle we can get in. Listen 'The beginning of eternity. The end of time and space. The beginning of every end. And the end pf everyplace." John shrugged. "I don't get it." "No, but I do," Philippa said triumphantly. "The answer is the letter e. E is the beginning of eternity, the end of time and space, the beginning of every end, and the end of everyplace.”

“May you have warm words on a cool evening, a full moon on a dark night, and a smooth road all the way to your door.”

“To grant all a man's wishes is to take away his dreams and ambitions. Life is only worth living if you have something to strive for. To aim at.”

“And tell them all about the books you've read. Better still, buy some more books and read them. That's an order. You can never read too many books.”