Robert Fulghum's books "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in
Kindergarten, It Was on Fire When I Lay Down on It, Uh-Oh, Maybe (Maybe
Not)" and" From Beginning to End" have struck a chord with readers
everywhere, making him one of the bestselling authors of our time with
six "New York Times" bestsellers in a row. There are currently more than
14 million copies of these books in print in 27 languages and 93
countries.
In "Words I Wish I Wrote, " Fulghum reveals the works of writers who
have inspired him. As he says, "When I look deep beneath my declarations
I see the underlying thoughts of others. As hard as I have tried to
speak in my own voice, I realize now that nothing I have said is
original or unique. My expressions echo and imitate the statements of
others. Thought is forever being revived, recycled and renewed. I have
found that someone else has always been this way before me. And they
have spoken of the way in words I wish I had written, in language I
could not improve upon."
The confirming statements, quotes and credos that influenced Fulghum
through the years are collected here, organized thematically into such
sections as Companions, God, Bene-Dictions, Contra-Dictions, Simplify
and Believe. Each section begins with a short introductory essay by
Fulghum followed by inspiring passages drawn from a diverse group of
sources, from Jerry Garcia to Albert Camus, Dylan Thomas to Franz Kafka,
Marcel Proust to Beatrix Potter. In addition, at the end of each
section, Fulghum offers readers his own personal commentary on the
sources.
