John Jakes

“Some people read to think, some to write, some to learn. But most people read to escape.”

“I think you must be a bit of a ham to be a writer.”

“There are two kinds of people in this world. The kind who divide the world into two kinds of people and the kind who don't.”

“Love is the only gold. That’s a cliché. But it’s the only cliché that’s true.”

“I'm a commercial writer, not a literary one. I'm not trying to change the world, I'm trying to entertain it.”

“Research is the cornerstone of good historical fiction.”

“The past is a mirror. You look into it and see yourself.”

“War's a devil's feast. It eats the young and the brave.”

“A library is a hospital for the mind.”

“You can't build a future on a foundation of lies.”

“History is not a dry stick of facts. It's the story of people.”