Of all the bewildering things about a new country, the absence of human landmarks is one of the most depressing and disheartening.

A work-room should be like an old shoe; no matter how shabby, it's better than a new one.

Most of the basic material a writer works with is acquired before the age of fifteen.

When we look back, the only things we cherish are those which in some way met our original want; the desire which formed in us in early youth, undirected, and of its own accord.

Trees were so rare in that country, and they had to make such a hard fight to grow, that we used to feel anxious about them, and visit them as if they were persons. It must have been the scarcity of detail in that tawny landscape that made detail so precious.

The history of every country begins in the heart of a man or a woman