John Irving

"It´s natural to want someone you love to do what you want, or what you think would be good for them, but you have to let everything happen to them. You can't interfere with people you love any more th…"

"If you care about something you have to protect it – If you’re lucky enough to find a way of life you love, you have to find the courage to live it."

"It is hard work and great art to make life not so serious."

"It is your responsibility to find fault with me, it is mine to hear you out. But don't expect me to change."

"Life forces enough final decisions on us. We should have the sense to avoid as many of the unnecessary ones as we can."

"Ted Seabrooke, my wrestling coach, had a kind of Nietzschean effect on me in terms of not just his estimation of my limited abilities, but his decidedly philosophical stance about how to conduct your …"

"John Irving, The Art of Fiction No. 93" by Ron Hansen in The Paris Review"

"Watch out for people who call themselves religious; make sure you know what they mean—make sure they know what they mean!"