“My French was neither good nor bad. I had enough to understand what people said to me, but speaking was difficult, and there were times when no words came to my lips, when I struggled to say even the simplest things. There was a certain pleasure in this, I believe – to experience language as a collection of sounds, to be forced to the surface of words where meanings vanish – but it was also quite wearing, and it had the effect of shutting me up in my thoughts.”

American writer, novelist, memoirist, poet, and filmmaker

Paul Auster was an American writer, novelist, memoirist, poet, and filmmaker. He is known for fiction and nonfiction that helped make him a distinctive voice in late 20th and early 21st century American letters. His work includes The New York Trilogy, Moon Palace, The Music of Chance, True Tales of American Life, The Book of Illusions, The Brooklyn Follies, Invisible, Sunset Park, Winter Journal, 4 3 2 1, and Bloodbath Nation. His books have been translated into more than 40 languages.