Karen Lord quotes:

I think if a story has a message it should be incidental and accidental, otherwise it leans too close to indoctrination.

In the beginning, God created human beings, which is to say God put the ingredients together, embedded the instructions for building on the template, and put it all into four separate eggs marked 'Some Assembly Required.

All my tales are true, drawn from life, and a life story is not a tidy thing.

Names are very important for humans, aren't they? How do I translate for you the name of this town as it seems to me, the true name that tells of its history and people and lands and weather and . . . everything?

In the beginning, God created human beings, which is to say God put the ingredients together, embedded the instructions for building on the template, and put it all into four separate eggs marked 'Some Assembly Required.'

You must never tell people their own stories. They have no interest in them, or they think they can tell them better themselves. Give them a stranger's life, and then they're content.

A little story is supported by a lot of untold backstory. What they get is more than what they see.

I find that sometimes if you just sit still, things have a way of finding you before you can find them.

Remember your ancestors, dream of your descendants and work hard while you're living.