Quotes

[1947] To be a good diarist, one must have a little snouty, sneaky mind.

Only one person in a thousand is a bore, and he is interesting because he is one person in a thousand.

[1936] It seems so odd that I should have lived so log and worked so hard (really, in the last twenty-five years I have worked harder than most people) and have nothing to show for it. . . . I feel as if I have been very frightened and had lost all my self-confidence and bounce. Like an old tennis-ball which has been a week in the rain.

[1932] I am doing nothing; therefore I do not fail. I am about to do many things, therefore I am on the verge of success. I know that this verge will not be a very sharp or productive verge. But until I reach it, I feel it will be magnificent, remunerative and calm.