By teaching us lessons from the hundreds of advanced cultures that prospered on this North American continent…Allen helps us to see that patriarchy is neither universal nor inevitable, but the first step in normalizing hierarchy

"Through it I saw the absolute universal truth of all things: there ain’t no such thing as magic talking monkeys, there’s definitely a God, and it still feels good to have sex with your neighbour’s wife if she’s hot"

"In 1985, I was taking meetings in Hollywood, looking for film work. An agent at Universal said to me, “Come back tonight, I want to show you a film we need help with, and we’d like your take on it.” I dutifully showed up at the Hitchcock Theater on the Universal lot and was granted an exclusive screening of this film, Brazil. Within minutes, my mouth was dry. I knew I was viewing a masterpiece, and yet they wanted my input on it. Of course, I had so many ideas, I would have said anything to get a chance to be a part of it, whatever it was (I had not been told anything about it). I called my friend Russell Mulcahy and told him, “I’ve just seen the most extraordinary film, and Universal want some music ideas from me.” “Don’t touch it!” said Russell. “That’s Terry Gillam’s film. He’s in a battle with Universal over it.” With some disappointment, I knew whose side I had to take. But I did get two pneumatic tapes of the film in the mail for my trouble. For months, I played it on my first flat-screen TV, just freezing on shot after shot for days on end. Weirdly perfect."

"There are many poets that I might have included in this list of books, but, to my mind, Shakespeare is the greatest of all in terms of the breadth of his knowledge, his lyricism, humor and the universal applicability of his work."

"A collection of short stories that focus on the holidays in America and unpack the ridiculousness of so many universal but also intimate traditions. I tend to read part of it every holiday season and laugh very hard out loud each time."