“The reason a writer writes a book is to forget a book and the reason a reader reads one is to remember it. ”

“The reason a writer writes a book is to forget a book and the reason a reader reads one is to remember it.”

“(W)hat I write when I force myself is generally just as good as what I write when I'm feeling inspired. It's mainly a matter of forcing yourself to write.”

“America is a wonderful country! I mean it! No honest writer would challenge that statement! The human comedy never runs out of material! it never lets you down!”

“Dear Mother,I meant to write you before this and I hope you haven't been worried.... I have met some Beautiful People and...”

“One belongs to New York instantly, one belongs to it as much in five minutes as in five years.”

“How very American it was to assume that these unsmiling Chinese would be pleased if one showed a preference for their native implements...How very American it was to feel somehow guilty unless one struggled over rice noodles and lumps of meat with things that looked like enlarged knitting needles.”