Quotes from Isabel Fonseca

On the whole, lying is a cheerful affair. Embellishments are intended to give pleasure. People long to tell you what they imagine you want to hear. They want to amuse you; they want to amuse themselves; they want to show you a good time. This is beyond hospitality. This is art.

His grandfather, he said, was from a traveling family—part of a group called the "Gringos"—signifying, here, not unwanted Americans but Greek-speaking Gypsies in Spain.

Mackay had just failed to tip the coat-check girl and was now blinking and working his arms into a too-small trench coat; he looked like a seagull trying to lift up out of an oil spill.