Books
by Paul Theroux
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Burma Sahib |
Theroux is a keen observer of human behaviour but I find his fictional biography of George Orwell somewhat thinly drawn, repetitious and rather dull. We read about the Orwell’s height and school (Eton) endlessly though neither have a direct bearing on his growing disaffection with the apparatus of colonial power. This ‘novel’ only really comes to life when Theroux injects Orwell’s alter ego, John Flory, the central character of Burmese Days into the narrative.
(Jeremy Miller - bwl 112 Spring 2024) |
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The Old Patagonian Express: By Train through the Americas |
Published in 1979 this travel book is obviously out of date but it's still extremely enjoyable. Theroux sets off from Boston (USA) to travel by train (well, many, many trains) to Patagonia. He has an eye for telling details, an ear for conversations with odd characters he meets, and a fine feeling for landscape. He sometimes comes across as a slightly irritating artist-as-sensitive-soul but overall he provides a highly engaging marathon through the Americas as they were.
(Annabel Bedini - bwl 66 Autumn 2012) |
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