“I grew up in a completely bookless household. It was my father's boast...” — John le Carre Quote

“I grew up in a completely bookless household. It was my father's boast that he had never read a book from end to end. I don't remember any of his ladies being bookish. So I was entirely dependent on my schoolteachers for my early reading with the exception of 'The Wind in the Willows,' which a stepmother read to me when I was in hospital.”

“I was quite able at the insignificant work I did in MI6, but absolutely dysfunctional in my domestic life. I had no experience of fatherhood. I had no example of marital bliss or the family unit.”

“She who boasts of lovers soon has none.”

“Not many stores can boast the unmatched variety that Boots has.”

“I don't boast about being a holy person but I know that prayer can do miracles.”