Writing for children is bloody difficult; books for children are as complex as their adult counterparts, and they should therefore be accorded the same respect.
Mark HaddonRead
Stories about mental aberration and oddity only make sense in context. Just how do people live with someone who is peculiar, gifted, strange or alien? It's odd because there's a little part of me that wants to write about exotic, strange bizarre subjects. Instead, I've rather reluctantly realised that what I write about is families.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the complexity of familial relationships and the author's struggle with their own fascination for the strange.
Mark Haddon shares his journey of understanding that while he is drawn to writing about peculiarities and the strange aspects of humanity, he ultimately finds that the fundamental theme of his work revolves around families. This highlights the idea that even the most bizarre or gifted individuals exist within the context of relationships, and that those connections shape our understanding of what is considered normal or odd.
Themes
FamiliesPeculiarRelationshipsWritingStrange
In practice
Example use cases
During a family gathering, this quote can be shared to spark a discussion about the diversity within the family.
More from Mark Haddon
All quotes →As to the number of novels I've abandoned... I shudder to think. I have thrown away five completed novels, and that's a gruesome enough figure. But not necessarily a waste of effort.
Mark HaddonRead
At twenty life was like wrestling an octopus. Every moment mattered. At thirty it was a walk in the country. Most of the time your mind was somewhere else. By the time you got to seventy, it was probably like watching snooker on the telly.
Mark HaddonRead
And Father said, "Christopher, do you understand that I love you?" And I said "Yes," because loving someone is helping them when they get into trouble, and looking after them, and telling them the truth, and Father looks after me when I get into trouble, like coming to the police station, and he looks after me by cooking meals for me, and he always tells me the truth, which means that he loves me.
Mark HaddonRead
From a good book, I want to be taken to the very edge. I want a glimpse into that outer darkness.
Mark HaddonRead
And I know I can do this because I went to London on my own, and because I solved the mystery…and I was brave and I wrote a book and that means I can do anything.
Mark HaddonRead
Similar quotes
Two ( or more) people come together and they agree that they should be together for a common purpose and that purpose is to add value to one another. ENGAGEMENTS are partnerships that should ALWAYS be Win-Win.
John C. MaxwellRead
They say it's the white man I should fear, But it's my own kind doin' all the killin' here.
Tupac ShakurRead
A lot of my chosen family is black and I say that unabashedly. For anyone who doesn't understand that, they just don't understand me and my generation because especially in the LGBT community, the concept of chosen family is so important and it's a survival tactic.
Trace LysetteRead
Marriage is like a three-speed gearbox - affection, friendship, love. It is not advisable to crash your gears and go right through to love straightaway. You need to ease your way through. The basis of love is respect, and that needs to be learned from affection and friendship.
Peter UstinovRead
Dating or finding someone is the last thing on my mind.
Taylor SwiftRead
I wholeheartedly believe that we can't organize just as women. There has to be specific messaging and an issue prioritization based on identity groups. Because when you ask a black woman what her top priority issues are versus a white woman versus a Muslim woman versus an undocumented woman, you're going to get... different answers.
Linda SarsourRead