“My favorite was 'The Secret Garden'. I loved it, and I think it's had ...” — Judith Viorst Quote

“My favorite was 'The Secret Garden'. I loved it, and I think it's had a big influence on all of my characters. 'The Secret Garden' is about transgressions and imperfect people.”

“Kids are always writing me: 'I had a bad day too.' 'I got gum in my hair.' And the kids also write to me to pass on advice to Alexander. My favorite one of those being, 'The next time you have a bad day, blame your brothers.' I didn't expect this. It's certainly the most successful of my books.”

“My Girl Scout leader. She told me if I listened more and talked less, I could grow up to be a good writer. I thought that was interesting advice at age 12.”

“Education is very important, and the botanical garden is the place to do that. I grew up in a semi-rural area and learned from that being my playground.”

“My first proper kitchen was this funny little club that we set up in Mercer Street in Covent Garden. It got shut down. Then I worked at a club in Notting Hill.”

“It took a lot of sacrifice from my dad. He managed to put cricket nets in our garden because he knew we had to practise every day. That would also keep us away from the streets.”