Norman MacCaig

But I hang on to books. I love them. I even think they're very nice decor in a room - far better than paintings... That's not quite true!

I don't care whether a book is a first edition or not. I'm not a bibliophile in that word's natural sense.

When I talk of hearing a poet's voice speaking, I always think of it as in the presence of the man.

The thing about great poetry is we have no defenses against it.

Well, I actually wrote her a letter a couple of days ago congratulating her. The tone I tried to convey in the letter is, look, you are a part of a great American historical process.