“In fact a few simple mathematical calculations reveal that if reference librarians were paid at market rates for all the roles they play, they would have salaries well over $200,000.”

“There were no ideas in music, only touch and instinct and sometimes grace—the mechanical tools—and that among those who were given the tools, only a few, a scant few, would be able to tell you something true.”

“It's all true; only the facts have been changed.”

“People in Africa have a well-deserved reputation for being happy. This may explain why: there is no word in Swahili for "sarcasm" therefore Africans have no concept of saying something and having it mean a playfully snide version of the opposite.”

“If I'd waited until I was well rested to read, I never would have read anything.”

“We all owe everyone for everything that happens in our lives. But it's not owing like a debt to one person--it's really that we owe everyone for everything. Our whole lives can change in an instant--so each person that keeps that from happening, no matter how small a role they play, is also responsible for all of it. Just by giving friendship and love, you keep the people around you from giving up--and each expression of friendship or love may be the one that makes all the difference.”

“All the world is full of inscape and chance left free to act falls into an order as well as purpose.”