A great novel can take on a life of its own. For them it becomes like a flesh-and-blood person.
It may be difficult for someone who hasn’t grown up with a writer in the family to conceive the many ways in which a novel can become part of your life. There is the discipline of writing, to begin with, and the procreative hush that it imposes on the literary household. There is also the reception of the book, which in my father’s case was almost always a major event. But for those who were involved in its creation, a great novel can take on a life of its own. For them it becomes like a flesh-and-blood person, a character in their lives, a dubious addition to the family. Such is my relationship to Herzog.
— Adam Bellow, in his introduction to the novel "Herzog" written by his Father, Saul Bellow. (Penguin Classics, 2003)
