The universe had an odd sense of fairness; it took away things one did not want to give up, and then gave things one did not ask for. — Laila Lalami Copy Share Image
There is a insularity within American fiction even for adults. It's very tough for books in translation in the US. — Laila Lalami Copy Share
I [read] "The Book of Unknown Americans," which is by a friend of mine, Cristina Henriquez, and is about two Latino, immigrant families who… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
The ones that were relevant while I wrote my book were books like "Beloved" by Toni Morrison, which is based on a historical fact,… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
“He needed time to adjust to real life, where heroes and villains could not be told apart by their looks or their accents, where… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
Every book leaves its mark on you. It might leave you hungry for that kind of book or you may be satiated, and you're… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
A name is precious; it carries inside it a language, a history, a set of traditions, a particular way of looking at the world.… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
In some ways, I think it's the closest that we come to the truth — is in the form of fiction. — Laila Lalami Copy Share
“His anger took many shapes: sometimes soft and familiar, like a round stone he had caressed for so long that is was perfectly smooth… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
When I was a child, I was reading books filled with people different from me, all French, all foreigners. There was a sense of… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
“It was a communion of pain, and no one in the city could pretend not to have heard it. The women had made witnesses… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
“know now that these conquerors, like many others before them, and no doubt like others after, gave speeches not to voice the truth, but… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
There are writers I return to no matter what I'm working on, writers like the South African J.M. Coetzee. He has an ability to… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
No one wrote better about the sin of pride, the corruption of power and the redemption of love. I will miss you, Gabriel García… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
Few [books] get translated and the ones that do have trouble making it into the mainstream. It's more likely that Americans will discover another… — Laila Lalami Copy Share
Thing that was very different for me is that an American child's reading is filled with Americans. — Laila Lalami Copy Share
