The author of The Kite Runner and And the Mountains Echoed touts the introduction of Stephen King's "The Body" as a poignant encapsulation of an author's limitations. More »
Benjamin Percy, author of Red Moon, makes the case. More »
Author Anthony Marra read new meaning into a line from Denis Johnson's Jesus' Son, years after that line had altered the way Marra thought about writing. More »
Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us author Michael Moss discusses just how apt the Lay's slogan "Betcha can't eat just one" is. More »
For Pollan, "eating is an agricultural act" offers more insight into how food relates to the world than Thoreau or Emerson's words ever could. More »
Fiona Maazel, the author of Woke Up Lonely and Last Last Chance, shares her favorite passage from her former teacher Jim Shepard. More »
Author Aatish Taseer, a chronicler of young Muslims, shares his favorite Naipaul passage. More »
Novelist Jim Crace, whose prose has been analyzed by mathematicians for its rhythm, learned his technique from the childhood counting game 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Sailor.' More »
Author Steven Barthelme shares how he came to appreciate 'Lady With Lapdog.' More »
Reading a passage about the unresolved desire to fill the empty spaces in a life helped the author understand her own grief. More »
A George Oppen poem about bereavement amazes poet Jeffrey Yang, and even connected him to a fellow poet. More »
The author benefited from adopting Murakami's philosophy of prioritizing fitness in order to maximize creativity. More »
The prolific author remembers a quote from Albert Camus about the Greek myth of King Sisyphus when she gets discouraged. More »
Author Benjamin Nugent shares the passage of 'The Corrections' that influenced his new novel. More »
The author of 'Go the Fuck to Sleep' shares the Michel de Montaigne aphorism he writes by. More »
'Drinking With Men' author Rosie Schaap found this poem when she needed it most. More »
The 'Twelve Tribes of Hattie' author shares her thoughts on a 1937 work by Osip Mandelstam. Plus: a song! More »
The 'Girl With a Pearl Earring' author says her inspiration is minimalist architect Mies van de Rohe. More »
The acclaimed novelist shares the passage from 'The Long Goodbye' that made him an author. More »
Author Jim Shepard talks about his favorite 'A Good Man Is Hard to Find' passage. More »
