"In my opinion, this book is not fiction, but read it as anything you like. An average kind of white woman flies off to Australia thinking she’s about to be given some kind of award by the indigenous people. She gets there, and they give her one—only it is not what she expected. In teaching her who they are, they initiate her into the deeper mysteries of life. If this book were a breeze, it would blow you over. It’s even better hearing the author on tape."

"Dorothy Norwood came from the gospel group the Caravans. She’s one of the great gospel luminaries who could just bring a song to life. She sang these songs with such great, passionate gospel fervor. “What does it take to deliver a proper gospel medley? “I would tell them maybe this year, or some time in the spring, come to my class, and they can learn all. I’m going to be doing some teaching somewhere here in the Detroit area. And I expect probably to do something from Carnegie Hall, a master class from Carnegie Hall. And I’d love to do that"

"This film is the most ambitious failure. I love Tati as an actor, and I love the way the scenes are made; they’re so intelligent and funny, and the timing is fantastic in each and every moment. It has a Chaplin-like precision. But it’s also a black hole that sucks energy from the audience. I also really love his short films, like the one where he’s teaching actors how to walk into a wall properly. For me, Tati took acting to a level comparable to sports. His performances are very direct, and you can see his skill as an actor."

"I discovered Christopher Isherwood in college. His writing style is so direct, warm, and inclusive. There's one passage in this book, published in 1964, that has really stayed with me — the description of America. The narrator is a British man teaching at a California college. He and a few colleagues are having a conversation, and an American woman is saying how romantic Mexico is. She's critical of America. The protagonist argues with her, talking about the virtues of the United States. He says that its beauty is in its abstraction. I thought that was an amazing insight — possibly true and compelling at least."