“I only wanted books—nothing more—only books, only words, it was never anything but words—give them to me, I don’t have any! Look, see, I don’t have any! Look, I’m naked, barefoot, I’m standing before you—nothing in my pants pockets, nothing… — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
“And wanting nothing, regretting nothing, Peters smiled gratefully at life—running past, indifferent, ungrateful, treacherous, mocking, meaningless, alien—marvelous, marvelous, marvelous.” — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
“...a book is a delicate friend, a white bird, an exquisite being, afraid of water. Darling things! Afraid of water, of fire, They shiver… — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
Already the writers are complaining that there is too much freedom. They need some pressure. The worse your daily life, the better your art.… — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
If there is a pattern, it will come back - maybe in Russia more than anywhere else, because it has collapsed so many times.… — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
Art has nothing to do with politics. It is the freest thing in the world. — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
People know that I am a very good author. But they would rather read what I have to say about the next election. — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
“Golbuchiks? Golbuchiks are ashes, entrails, dung, stove smoke, clay, and they’ll all return to clay. They’re full of dirt, candle oil, droppings, dust. You,… — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
Politics disappears; it vanishes. What remains constant is human life. So I try to develop a perspective in my writing where politics is just… — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
I don't want to deal with big, grand themes in my stories; art has nothing to do with themes. When you deal with themes,… — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
You read, move your lips, figure out the words, and it's like you're in two places at the same time: you're sitting or lying… — Tatyana Tolstaya Copy Share Image
