Alain de Botton, author of seven books, has explored love, travel, architecture, and more, pursuing a “philosophy of life.” His latest book, The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work, ponders what humans do all day and why, a subject he found underrepresented in literature (though he cited Norman Mailer and Virginia Woolf as fine writers on the topic). And even though he writes about work, de Botton said of his trip to Los Angeles, “I do generally like any excuse to stop working and hop on a plane.” Read more about de Botton below.
Q. What do you wake up to?
A. The cries of my children.
Q. What music have you listened to today?
A. Natalie Merchant.
Q. What is your favorite word?
A. Melancholic.
Q. What do you find beautiful?
A. Celadon green vases.
Q. How would you describe yourself in five words or fewer?
A. Anxious, intellectual, worried, happy.
Q. When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A. Architect.
Q. What is your favorite cocktail?
A. I don’t drink any cocktails really.
Q. What is your greatest extravagance?
A. Books.
Q. If you could only take one more journey, where would you go?
A. The desert somewhere.
Q. What profession would you like to practice in your next life?
A. Architecture.
Q. What is your favorite holiday and why?
A. Spending time in my study. I hate going on holiday.
Q. What is your fondest childhood memory?
A. Playing Lego in my room.
Q. What is your most prized material possession?
A. My children.
Q. What promise do you make to yourself that you break the most often?
A. That I’m going to take it easy.
Q. What should you throw away but haven’t been able to part with?
A. Books.
Q. Who is the one person living or dead you would most like to meet?
A. Philip Roth.
Q. Who would you like to write your biography?
A. Dave Eggers.
To read more about de Botton’s lecture, click here.
*Photo by Aaron Salcido.