It is a callous age; we have seen so many marvels that we are ashamed…

Some of my youthful readers are developing wonderful imaginations. This pleases me.

I believe that dreams — day dreams, you know, with your eyes wide open and your brain machinery whizzing — are likely to lead to the betterment of the world.

When I was young I longed to write a great novel that should win me fame. Now that I am getting old my first book is written to amuse children.

I have learned to regard fame as a will-o-the-wisp which, when caught, is not worth the possession; but to please a child is a sweet and lovely thing that warms one's heart and brings its own reward.

Now we can cross the Shifting Sands.

As the years pass, and we look back on something which, at the time, seemed unbelievably discouraging and unfair, we come to realize that, after all, God was at all times on our side. The eventual outcome was, we discover, by far the best …