People process pain differently. My family, we were pretty humorous about things that went on. James McBride Read Quote
You can play Mozart all you want and pretend that it gives you class, but what is class, you know? Class is a bus driver on the M103 who gets off the bus to help somebody on board even though he’s tired, he’s exhausted, and he’s two months behind on his mortgage. That’s real class. James McBride Read Quote
When you tell them you’re a writer, they say, ‘What have you written?’ And then you’ve got to tell them what you’ve done. I don’t ask a plumber what he does. Then I have to explain what I’ve done, and I haven’t really, you know. I’ve just told some stories. James McBride Read Quote
I’m not one of those who can listen to music and write. I need the door closed. Windows shut. Facing the wall. No birds tweeting, views of nature, and so forth. James McBride Read Quote
Atticus Finch is, you know, he was just his whole – the business of his modesty and his ability to see tomorrow and to try to buttress his knowledge of what was coming for his kids was something that I’ll never – as a father I’m not able to do. James McBride Read Quote
It’s the same old story. Nothing in this world happens unless white folks says it happens. And therein lies the problem of being a professional black storyteller – writer, musician, filmmaker. James McBride Read Quote
