Ellis's understanding of himself and the world around him certainly develops because of his adventures, and part of that development comes through recognizing other people for what they are.

The novels take longer to write than the picture book texts, and they do take a different sort of concentration. However, a very short, simple story that works well is just as exciting to me as any longer and more complex book.

Being a librarian certainly helped me with my writing because it made me even more of a reader, and I was always an enthusiastic reader. Writing and reading seem to me to be different aspects of a single imaginative act.

At the same time, I think books create a sort of network in the reader's mind, with one book reinforcing another. Some books form relationships. Other books stand in opposition. No two writers or readers have the same pattern of interaction.

Life is a wildly transient thing with people coming into your life and dropping away. It definitely takes work to maintain relationships.

Maria did teach us a lot. It taught us to value what we have: our friends, our neighbors, and those who helped us. I know my people in PR are active. It took us by surprise, but we are warriors, and we are ready for any adversity.

I think it's also important for people to really see that your identity doesn't come just from what you do but who you are. My relationship with Jesus Christ is the most important thing to me. Because of that, I don't have to change whether I am one of the most popular guys in football.

If we are to judge of love by its consequences, it more nearly resembles hatred than friendship.