Riding the Iron Rooster

I'm always a fool for good descriptions of long journeys and this is an excellent example. It describes a year spent by Paul Theroux travelling by train (mostly) through a post Cultural Revolution China.
Well observed, with a cast of characters that wouldn't be out of place in a novel and told with just a light touch of humor, a very enjoyable piece of writing.

A year in China in the mid 1980's. Pretty much if the train went there, so did Theroux.He is a cynical man, who generally dislikes more than he likes, but he manages to describe fantastically what it is he doesn't like!I enjoyed this more than [b:The Great Railway Bazaar 825672 The Great Railway Bazaar Paul Theroux https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1307517276s/825672.jpg 811411] and [b:The Old Patagonian Express 1426730 The Old Patagonian Express Paul Theroux https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1183497003s/1426730.jpg 1197157], although they are very similar in style.The first chapter was enough to convince me I would enjoy this book. It tells of Theroux joining a group tour from London to China by train. Why he ever thought that would be a good idea I don't know. The awful people, the grating discomfort of being stuck with them the whole time, all so accurately described. Also amusing that they didn't know who he was, and discussing the Great Railway Bazaar.So on into China, where each train trip is described, along with his fellow travellers, then his exploring of the destination, and again, the people he meets.I particularly enjoyed the way Theroux interprets the ubiquitous Chinese laugh, used at the end of a sentence to express any number of things.“The laugh meant emphatically Don't bring that up.““This ha-ha meant Rules are rules. I don't make them , so you should not be difficult.““...the chattering laugh that means You have just asked me a tactless question, but I will answer anyway.““This laugh meant You are a fool.““His laugh was urgent, and meant No questions please!““It was one of the few genuine laughs in China. It meant We can always fool a foreigner!“An insightful mixture of travel, history, geography & sociology.