One summer I was homeless in L.A., when I was about fifteen, and I used to go to the library to get books. I would have books in abandoned cars, in the seats, cubby holes on the L.A. River, just to have books wherever I could keep them, I just loved to have books. And that really helped me. I didn't realize it was going to be my destiny; I didn't know I was going to be a writer.
Luis J. RodriguezI was kind of a weird homie; I was a weird kid. Nobody in my family loved books. I'm the only one.
Luis J. RodriguezIn order to stay out of trouble I worked in industry. You can't even do that nowadays; there were all those factories.
Luis J. RodriguezI worked in a steel mill, I worked in a foundry, I worked in a paper mill, I worked in a chemical refinery, construction, I did all that. It was great work, it was good. I learned welding, mechanic, carpentry, but it saved me from going back to prison because that's helpful. It's really sad because those jobs are gone.
Luis J. Rodriguez