"I think we are all gifted as children, but we aren’t gifted with the same gifts. In crowded, poor schools, an overwhe…"

"It’s memorable because it makes you either laugh or cry. If a story’s really good, it does both. Sometimes it’s not t…"

"I think my work still has a distinctive voice that is uniquely mine—and that voice is one of a person speaking Spanis…"

"If I had to speak about anything that was difficult in my life now looking back at it, I would say the most difficult…"

"The only reason we write—well, the only reason why I write; maybe I shouldn’t generalize—is so that I can find out so…"

"I don’t take it personally. It has nothing to do with me, or with my book. The book is being taught because it is tel…"

"I like living in a town not dominated by cars. I like living in a small community where artists from around the world…"

"Of course I like to write about love, but then I’ll ask, how is Mexican love different from American love? I’ll look …"

"my favorite writers are, right now Merce Rodoreda, Grace Paley, Juan Rulfo, Manuel Puig, Marguerite Duras - these are…"

"I would never want to offend any writer by publicly admitting which books I’ve put down; it’s not the writer’s fault …"