Books choose their authors; the act of creation is not entirely a rational and conscious one.
It is very, very easy not to be offended by a book. You just have to shut it.
A book is a version of the world. If you do not like it, ignore it; or offer your own version in return.
I don’t read my books, I write them. Once I’ve finished the many years it usually takes me to write them, I can’t bear to read them, because I’ve spent too long with them already. I’m not advertising them very well, am I?
I have always thought, the secret purpose of the book tour is to make the writer hate the book he’s written. And, as a result, drive him to write another book.
Every time you finish a book, you have a terrible feeling that there’s just never going to be another one. But fortunately, so far, the next one has always shown up.
It’s always been colossally important to me that my books should be well received in India. It’s where I come from.
Reading is a very different thing than performing. In fact, one of the things I think that doesn’t work in books on tape is if the person doing the reading “acts” too much; it becomes irritating to you listening to it.
I think people direct good films when they feel personal to them, not because it’s a famous book or something. It has to something move over that and somehow become personal to the director.
I think the book is less emotional than the film. With the film, the emotions are much more raw and in front. In the book, they are kind of ironized and seen through comedy.
Be sure that you go to the author to get at his meaning, not to find yours.
I write books I’d enjoy reading, I’m the reader standing behind my shoulder.
Very often, people who actually pick up a book of mine for the first time are kind of surprised. And I get these letters saying, well, who knew that you were good, you know?
You want all your books to stick around after you’ve gone.
People are always telling me that they’ve seen people reading my books on the subway, or the beach, or whenever.
Sometimes when you finish a book, you don’t know quite what you’ve got.
I grew up kissing books and bread.
Bread and books: food for the body and food for the soul – what could be more worthy of our respect, and even love?
You start at the stupid end of the book, and if you’re lucky you finish at the smart end.
It’s so disappointing, to put it mildly, that people know so much about my life. Because it means that they’re always trying to look at my books in terms of my life.