ON THE NIGHT TABLE

Patrick deWitt — Author, Dodge City

Patrick deWitt

I’m reading a couple things at once. I’m doing research, as much as I do research, about hotels in New York City. So I’m reading factual accounts of, like, the Waldorf Astoria, that kind of thing. Those are quite dry, not that interesting.

But I’ve just started a Graham Greene novel called Travels with my Aunt. The dry hotel books aren’t really worth mentioning, but Graham Greene’s coming in to save the day — his book’s really lively and weird, and it’s just sort of right up my street — travels with an eccentric, weird aunt. I’m reading it for pure enjoyment, not because it’s related to anything that I’m working on, which is nice — it’s a relief to read something like a fan rather than, you know, somebody who’s working on something.

Travels with My Aunt