People who don't read books a lot are threatened by books. Paul Theroux booklotpeople Change image and share on social
The Japanese have perfected good manners and made them indistinguishable from rudeness. Paul Theroux goodindistinguishablejapanese Change image and share on social
People write about getting sick, they write about tummy trouble, they write about having to wait for a bus. They write about waiting. They write three pages about how long it took them to get a visa. I'm not interested in the boring parts. Everyone has tummy trouble. Everyone waits in line. I don't want to hear about it. Paul Theroux borebushear share on social
To me, writing is a considered act. It's something which is a great labor of thought and consideration. Paul Theroux actconsiderconsideration Change image and share on social
A journey awakens all our old fears of danger and risk. Your life is on the line. You are living by your own resources; you have to find your own way and solve every problem on the road. Paul Theroux awakendangerfear Change image and share on social
I was kind of raised with the suggestion that I had a duty to do; that life was real, life was earnest. And I hated that, actually. I needed to be liberated, to be told that I could live the life that I wanted to live; that I didn't need a job, or to be shouted at; that I could be myself; that I could be happy. Paul Theroux dutyearnesthappy share on social
I wanted the Peace Corps to be something very vague and unorganized, and to a large extent it was. It did not run smoothly. The consequence was that we were left alone. Paul Theroux consequencecorpsextent Change image and share on social
The idea of traveling in Africa for me is based on going by road or train or bus or whatever and crossing borders. You can't travel easily or at all through some countries. Paul Theroux africabaseborder Change image and share on social
I was raised in a large family. The first reason for my travel was to get away from my family. I knew that I wanted to be a writer, but I didn't want people to ask me questions about it. Paul Theroux familyknowlarge Change image and share on social
I wouldn't say that I'm a travel novelist, but rather a novelist who travels - and who uses travel as a background for finding stories of places. Paul Theroux backgroundfindnovelist Change image and share on social