697 Quotes by John Irving

I have a very poor record at multiple choice questions.

Homer and Candy passed by the empty and brightly lit dispensary; they peeked into Nurse Angela's empty office. Homer knew better than to peek into the delivery room when the light was on. From the dormitory, they could hear Dr. Larch's reading voice. Although Candy held tightly to his hand, Homer was inclined to hurry - in order not to miss the bedtime story.

but writers, Garp knew, were just observers - good and ruthless imitators of human behavior.

You take every opportunity given you in this world, even if you have too many opportunities. One day, the opportunities stop, you know.

No one could have fathomed what a life he'd led, for it was chiefly a life lived in his mind.

. . .There are moments when time does stop. We must be alert enough to notice such moments . . .

I sometimes think that what I do as a writer is make a kind of colouring book, where all the lines are there, and then you put in the colour.

And Father said, “There are no happy endings.” “Right!” cried Iowa Bob – an odd mixture of exuberance and stoicism in his cracked voice. “Death is horrible, final, and frequently premature,” Coach Bob declared. “So what?” my father said. “Right!” cried Iowa Bob. “That’s the point: So what?” Thus the family maxim was that an unhappy ending did not undermine a rich and energetic life. This was based on the belief that there were no happy endings.

I think better of our behaviour as individuals than I do when we see ourselves as members of a group. It's when people start forming groups that we have to watch our backs.