No. 1 Travel Companion

The Hindu Literary Review carries an interview with Alexander McCall Smith, the prolific, self-effacing author of the best light reads out there today. (Jai Arjun writes a neat reco for Smith here)

If you had to describe your work to an Indian audience, how would you describe it?

I don't know if I'd be comfortable talking about my work. I suppose I might say quirky. It's a bit quirky, a bit humorous. Ultimately, I want to make readers feel better and more hopeful. I don't like depressing literature. Going back to the Narayan novels - you really feel sympathy for the people involved. It's a very simple ambition, nothing very grand…

I'll take that any day, thank you.