Enid Blyton

You became a published writer at 19 and you’ve previously mentioned how your battle with Burkitt’s lymphoma during your childhood led to literature being an important part of your life. Which are the writers you encountered growing up who inspired you to become an author? Author Damon Galgut (Jaipur Literature Festival 2024) I’m sorry to say that my reading was less precocious than my early publication. I was raised on a diet of Enid Blyton (much maligned these days) and Tolkien. I was hungry to read almost…

Author of business books, Nishka Rathi (42) who devours fiction for Young Adults, believes books meant squarely for adults are often cynical and predictable. She particularly returns to the work of Diana Wynne Jones and Terry Pratchett because “the way their books tackle situations and talk about reality is neither highly depressing nor very positive.” Rathi believes adults see people through many filters: “’Oh, they’re from this community, or that area, so they’re like this’. But kids see things as they are. So in…

Shreya Sen-Handley’s Handle With Care is a delicious documentation of her offbeat travels and culinary exploits around the world with her British husband, two children, and their dog.Her rambunctious adventures, which are “dished up with love and mischief”, span bustling international capitals from New York to Paris. But what really sets this travelogue apart are her quirky tales from locales like the Greek island of Corfu, home to Gerald Durrell, the author of My Family & Other Animals. 258pp, ₹399; HarperCollins…