Strangers who have seen Shaw face to face are wont to report their surprise at his gentleness and consideration, his willingness to listen and his co… - Jacques Barzun

We are all bundles of wild and warrantless convictions, especially about one another, and when one gets an accidental glimpse of someone else's candid mind, the sight is dread-inspiring. For his cozy chamber of horrors - and particularly his facts - are owned and enjoyed in complete faith.

The book, like the bicycle, is a perfect form.

What we ask of a writer in the first place is a unique voice. We ask for the rest later, and we may even pretend that it is only the later things we required — no personal, individual, induplicable quality, just pure art.