Easter Eggs 001: Theroux

A series dedicated to the strange and interesting things that can be uncovered by closely reading books. 

From Paul Theroux's The Happy Isles of Oceania:

Here, our author recounts an episode in which he happens upon a group of strangers in the Pacific island nation of Tonga—American expats—one of whom happens to have known his brother in college. Implausible? Maybe, but stranger things have happened.

Now, Mr. Theroux's travel books are presented as works of non-fiction reportage. And he also happens to have brothers. None of them, however—so far as I can tell—is named Mycroft. And it would indeed be odd for someone to name their child after the crotchety and eccentric elder brother of Sherlock Holmes; it would surely make it a bit too convenient—if nothing else—for that person's younger siblings to cast themselves in the role of the great detective, by extension.

So what is this, then? A joke? A Theroux family riddle? Whatever it is, it appears that one of Paul Theroux's own sons, Marcel, would later go on to write a novel about Mycroft Holmes. So my money's on the idea that this name has some special significance for the Theroux family. Perhaps they are simply big fans of the Conan Doyle stories.