Susan Orlean

“One of my favorite activities as a teen-ager was to watch television over the phone with my best friend.”

— Susan Orlean

“Knowledge is a beautiful thing, but there are a few things I wish I didn't know.”

— Susan Orlean

“My ace in the hole as a human being used to be my capacity for remembering birthdays. I worked at it. Whenever I made a new friend, I made a point of finding out his or her birthday early on, and I would record it in my Filofax calendar.”

— Susan Orlean

“You may never learn the names of any of the people you talk to in a dog park, even after many, many hours spent there with them, and many hours of conversation. But if - knock on wood - anything should ever happen to your dog, these nameless non-strangers will rally, sympathize, offer to help, and hold your hand. I know this from experience.”

— Susan Orlean

“I work at home, in the country, and days will go by when, except for my husband and son and the occasional UPS man, the only sentient creatures that see me are my chickens and turkeys.”

— Susan Orlean

“When I wonder what the future of books will be, I often think about horses. Before automobiles existed, everyone had a horse. Then cars became available, and their convenience, compared to horses, was undeniable.”

— Susan Orlean

“I once had a boyfriend who couldn't write unless he was wearing a necktie and a dress shirt, which I thought was really weird, because this was a long time ago, and no one I knew ever wore dress shirts, let alone neckties it was like he was a grown-up reenacter or something.”

— Susan Orlean

“Living in a rural setting exposes you to so many marvelous things - the natural world and the particular texture of small-town life, and the exhilarating experience of open space.”

— Susan Orlean

“There will always be vain, obsessive people who want to own rare and extraordinary things whatever the cost there will always be people for whom owning beautiful, dangerous animals brings a sense of power and magic.”

— Susan Orlean

“I remember, when I was a kid, watching my mother jam herself into her girdle - a piece of equipment so rigid it could stand up on its own - and I remember her coming home from fancy parties and racing upstairs to extricate herself from its cruel iron grip.”

— Susan Orlean

“Every corny thing that's said about living with nature - being in harmony with the earth, feeling the cycle of the seasons - happens to be true.”

— Susan Orlean

“I can imagine a future in which real books will exist but in a more limited, particular way.”

— Susan Orlean

“I don't turn to greeting cards for wisdom and advice, but they are a fine reflection of the general drift of the culture.”

— Susan Orlean

“I went to a football school, which meant that I went to a university that served up education and was simultaneously operating a sports franchise.”

— Susan Orlean

“The first thing I think about when I wake up most mornings is the fact that I'm tired. I have been tired for decades. I am tired in the morning and I am tired while becalmed in the slough of the afternoon, and I am tired in the evening, except right when I try to go to sleep.”

— Susan Orlean

“What's funny is that the idea of popularity - even the use of the word 'popular' - is something that had been mostly absent from my life since junior high. In fact, the hallmark of life after junior high seemed to be the shedding of popularity as a central concern.”

— Susan Orlean

“I am of mixed minds about the issue of privacy. On one hand, I understand that information is power, and power is, well, power, so keeping your private information to yourself is essential - especially if you are a controversial figure, a celebrity, or a dissident.”

— Susan Orlean

“Buying a car used to be an experience so soul-scorching, so confidence-splattering, so existentially rattling that an entire car company was based on the promise that you wouldn't have to come in contact with it.”

— Susan Orlean

“You can find out anything you want about a car now, and especially every bit of information about the price, without relying on the dealers.”

— Susan Orlean

“Sometimes I'm dazzled by how modern and fabulous we are, and how easy everything can be for us that's the gilded glow of technology, and I marvel at it all the time.”

— Susan Orlean