Quotes from Julie Andrews

The world is full of magical places, and the library has always been one of them for me. A library can be that special place for our children.

Sometimes oppurtunities float right past your nose. Work hard, apply yourself, and be ready. When an opportunity comes you can grab it.

A rose lay open in full bloom and, looking from my garden room, I watched the sun-baked flower fill with rain. It seemed so fragile, resting there, and such a silence filled the air, the beauty of the moment caused me pain. "What more?" I thought. "There must be more." As if in answer then, I saw one weighty drop that caused my rose to fall. It trembled, then cascaded down to earth just staining gentle brown and, since then, I've felt different. That's all.

I think any director is intimidating.

I've long wanted to introduce children to the wonder of the arts.

I think every young girl at some point in her early life wonders what it's like to be a princess. They like the idea of dressing up and the fun of it.

Programs that bring the arts to young kids are always the first to be cut. It's mind-boggling to me.

I think I'm just proudest to be the lady who was asked to play Mary Poppins. She's such a wonderful character, and there's so much tremendous talent out there. So I feel very lucky to be the one who got to play her.

The loveliest roles, for me, have a growth arc - a beginning, a middle, and an end - and I'm always grateful when I can find one of those emotional journeys.

I justified working so hard by knowing that I was helping to maintain the roof over our heads.

My mother was terribly important to me, and I know how much I yearned for her in my youth, but I don't think I truly trusted her.

Be a part of all that is decent and be an ambassador for the kind of world that you want to live in.

I did all of my learning on 'My Fair Lady.'

I do wish somewhere there was a film of our stage production of 'My Fair Lady.'

I did 'My Fair Lady' for almost 3 1/2 years, eight performances a week. It was a marathon.

In my early years, I was much too ignorant and didn't realize how desperately important it all is, how really important the lyrics are. And for me as a singer, I am a lady who takes the lyrics first.

Much as I adore the melodies, I choose a song for what it has to say.

I'd say almost that words come first, melody second.

You'd think, of course, it's about the melody - that's a given. But really, I'm no good at singing a song unless it has a good lyric.

Truthfully, I mostly can be as private as I want.

I turned down 'The Prime of Miss Jean Brody' with Maggie Smith. I think she got the Academy Award.

When I start to write, I see my stories as a kind of movie. For instance, I ask myself, "What kind of opening do I want for this book?"

My sense of the family history is somewhat sketchy, because my mother kept a great deal to herself.

I do not knock 'Poppins' or 'The Sound of Music.' They gave me pleasure, and I know they've given a lot of people enormous pleasure.