My parents were keen for me to have the education they themselves never had. They werent able to guide me towards particular books, but they encouraged me to read, which I did, randomly and compulsively. – Ian Mcewan
I think of novels in architectural terms. You have to enter at the gate, and this gate must be constructed in such a way that the reader has immediate confidence in the strength of the building. – Ian Mcewan
By concentrating on what is good in people, by appealing to their idealism and their sense of justice, and by asking them to put their faith in the future, socialists put themselves at a severe disadvantage. – Ian Mcewan
One important theme is the extent to which one can ever correct an error, especially outside any frame of religious forgiveness. All of us have done something we regret – how we manage to remove that from our conscience, or whether thats even possible, interested me. – Ian Mcewan