“Yes, 'Black Girl/White Girl' might be described as a 'coming-of-age' n...” — Joyce Carol Oates Quote

“Yes, 'Black Girl/White Girl' might be described as a 'coming-of-age' novel, at least for the survivor Genna. It is also intended as a comment on race relations in America more generally: we are 'roommates' with one another, but how well do we know one another?”

“Criticism is, for me, like essay writing, a wonderful way of relaxation; it doesn't require a heightened and mediated voice, like prose fiction, but rather a calm, rational, even conversational voice.”

“It is not her body that he wants but it is only through her body that he can take possession of another human being, so he must labor upon her body, he must enter her body, to make his claim.”

“People still recognize me all the time on the street. The first thing they say when they stop me is, 'Where have you been?' The second comment they make is always, 'Oh, you've grown up.'”

“I'm not big on reading business books. I get copies of all of them, because people want me to put a comment on the jacket. Every once in a while, I'll get interested and read one all the way through.”

“I think a lot of times, the historical piece is often a way to comment on the present.”