“For many writers, research is a big yawn. The past
is a foreign country, and who cares how they do things differently there?
Research is reading disintegrating papers in dusty libraries; sifting through
shoe boxes in ancient attics; interviewing people who don’t know when to stop
talking. But for biographers, research is thrilling. Reconstructing history is
delicious. Research is where the story comes from; it’s the bits and pieces of
the past we are trying to bring to life.”— Susan Cheever, “Riff: ‘Why Didn’t Rebecca Stop at the Railroad Crossing?’” The New York
Times Sunday Magazine, June 29,
2014
