Curious Quote by Joyce Carol Oates

“Through a story that delineates the power of words to obfuscate, exploit, and distort human reality, Henry James offers his own nuanced, precise, and…

— Siri Hustvedt

If Wells recognized any merit in [Henry] James, it was his undeniable talent for using very long sentences in order to say nothing at…

— Félix J. Palma

That is the mystery: Reading Henry James can yield prose that is contrary to James, yet inspired by him. Who can understand this?

— Joyce Carol Oates

“No matter that you have a PhD and have read all of Henry James twice. If you still persist in writing, "Good food at…

— Lynne Truss

“Write down what your reader needs, no more, no less. Reading should be textured, but not obscure. Henry James could make an entire paragraph…

— Christopher T. Garry

Mr. Henry James writes fiction as if it were a painful duty.

— Oscar Wilde

“It was difficult to understand him. On the one hand he pandered even to the most unimportant things while on the other he was…

— Heinz Linge

“...As with many American conversations, the words he spoke had not conveyed what he had intended by them. He could never decide if it…

— Laila Halaby

“To put an arrogant 'famous' writer in his place: pretend to be illiterate.”

— Mokokoma Mokhonoana

Henry James was our master of periphrasis -- the fine art of saying as little as possible in the greatest number of words.

— Edward Abbey

“The ordinary writer has an unmistakable preference for this style, because it causes the reader to spend time and trouble in understanding that which…

— Arthur Schopenhaur

“He had not even the self-complacency that enables stupid people to accept their mediocrity with unction; he had on the contrary an engaging modesty.”

— Maugham W. Somerset (William Somerset