“Anyone who thinks my story is anywhere near over is sadly mistaken.”

“If you think, as a Western person, that you are not affected by religious traditions, you are sadly mistaken.”

“If you think for a moment that your McCarthy-era tactics will suppress the voices of criticism, you are sadly mistaken.”

“There is no comfort anywhere for anyone who dreads to go home.”

“I don’t think Father Hugo is any more mistaken than the most learned theologian and he might be closer to the truth. Jacob, I don’t think anyone knows Who’s in charge.”

“The main characters in this story, with whom you want to become intimate, are nowhere near here. They aren't expecting you; you mean nothing to them. If you think they're going to get out of their warm beds and travel miles to meet you, you are mistaken.”

“I have things in my head that are not like what anyone taught me — shapes and ideas so near to me, so natural to my way of being and thinking.”

“Is anyone anywhere happy?”

“Strange? I don't think that word comes anywhere near it. My troops are on an overnight camp three hundred kilometres away from here. I had to sleep at the Santangelo penitentiary for pre-pubescent girls.”

“I was paid to be a warhead, and anyone who came near me should get knocked into Hell!”