Women's Day: Judge books by their covers, says Saaz Aggarwal

The Prince and the Pauper. I loved it, still have it, fished it out and realised from ‘After the story by Mark Twain’ on the title page that it was an abridged version – Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, London and Melbourne… surprisingly the year of publishing is not mentioned but I would have read it when I was seven or eight – late 1960s.

The first book you wish you'd read?

Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh … I’ve been eager to read it for SO long and it’s been on my bedside shelf, waiting, but…

Your hands-down favourite writer?

Kurt Vonnegut <3 absolutely no comparison

A genre you're partial to?

Literary romances

A book you outgrew and grew into again?

Love of Seven Dolls by Paul Gallico

A classic you'd like to have written?

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

A character you wish you'd met?

Darcy (of course).

An author you want to meet on the other side?

Eiji Yoshikawa, I never got enough about Musashi.

Inside jokes or references that found their way into your writing?

I like to channel Stephen Fry and Spike Milligan.

Your most unconventional workspaces?

For several months the lobby of what was then called National Hospital, while waiting for my daughter to finish school across the road. This was really long ago and I was writing on a notepad – with a pen! It’s Hinduja Hospital now and probably not that easy to gain entrance into. I’ve always worked at airport lounges and waiting areas too, while waiting to take off …

As you work, you listen to?

My inner yakking only! It doesn’t matter what’s playing or even if there’s a big racket with people shouting or construction happening… I can’t hear it. One of the precious gifts of my existence.

The book(s) you've gifted most?
On Two Feet and Wings by Abbas Kazerooni
Mukund and Riaz by Nina Sabnani
and of course my books :)