Narayani Basu's 10 Favourite Books of all Time

The Return by Hisham Matar, Penguin

At its heart, this is not a memoir. It’s a journey, not just back to Libya to try and understand the truth behind a father’s disappearance, but through loss and love. It’s also about home—about the different versions of it we find or build in our lifetimes. I love all of Matar’s writing, but this one has stayed with me for a long time.

A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal by Ben Macintyre, Bloomsbury

Espionage is one of my favourite genres in non-fiction and nobody does it as deftly and with such flair for detail as Ben Macintyre. This one is the story of the spy, Kim Philby: Cambridge graduate, clubman, cricket enthusiast, bon viveur and tireless party-thrower, ace undercover agent—and a supreme double agent during the Cold War.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, Virago

There is nothing by her that I do not love, but this Gothic romance is a classic from du Maurier: the story of a young bride haunted by the shadow of her older husband’s first wife. From the opening sentence—“Last night I dreamed I went to Manderley again”—to its final act, this is a book that is hard to put down and harder to forget.

The House of Vandekar by Evelyn Anthony, RHUK

This is a sprawling three-generation saga of romance, suspense and family drama. I first read this in my twenties and I’ve never forgotten it. Anthony’s prose is sharp and staccato, but her writing holds the kind of layered emotions that you can almost feel.

Arabella by Georgette Heyer, Sourcebooks Casablanca

This is one of my favourite Heyer novels and one I return to again and again when I need some laughter or an escape from life. All of Heyer’s Regency-era historical novels sparkle with wit. Her characters spring to life with such gorgeous research that you can see them and hear them.

The World Is What It Is: The Authorised Biography of V. S. Naipaul by Patrick French, Picador

I’m a huge fan of French’s work as a biographer, but in this particular biography, I think he brought off something very difficult: an honest, compelling and nuanced portrait of a living subject. This was, of course, done based on French’s insistence on complete and unfettered access to both Naipaul—in interviews and archival material—and to the diaries of his first wife, Patricia Hale. The result was a biography that continues to astound, in scope, scale and complexity, when one returns to it.

The Moon and Sixpence by W. S. Maugham, Vintage

One of my favourites by Maugham, this is the story of an uncompromising and self-destructive man who forsakes wealth and comfort to pursue the life of a painter. Based partly on the life of the painter Paul Gauguin, this is a close and almost painful inspection of artistic genius, and the cost in human lives it sometimes demands on those closest to it.

In Xanadu by William Dalrymple, Bloomsbury

This was a very young Dalrymple’s journey from Jerusalem to the site of Xanadu in Inner Mongolia, China. There’s a cast of characters here that is a delight to meet, and a range of history that is fascinating to learn. Moreover, it is a fantastic example of travel writing at its finest.

Six Minutes in May: How Churchill Unexpectedly Became Prime Minister by Nicholas Shakespeare, Vintage

This is, quite literally, a biography of six minutes in May 1940, during which the House of Commons voted on the debate following Britain’s brief and disastrous Norway campaign in World War II. Shakespeare makes brilliant use of diaries, archives, unpublished memoirs and private papers to build, blow by blow, the negotiations and intrigues that ruled out the other candidates—and favoured the election of Winston Churchill. Super stuff.

The Secret Lives of Somerset Maugham by Selina Hastings, Hodder And Stoughton

I’m reading this currently and it’s definitely among my favourites. Maugham was a complex man who observed and wrote of human nature’s most difficult and darkest emotions. Hastings writes with a mix of empathy, understanding and neutrality that I really admire.