Arun Gupto is the academic director of Institute of Advanced Communication, Education, and Research, Pokhara University. He is also a faculty member at Central Department of English, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur. Author of Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley: Grace, Rage, Knowledge, Gupto talked to the Post’s Marissa Taylor about his reading habits. Excerpts:

How did you first come to love books?

My grandmother and mother were avid readers. I saw them reading almost all the time, even while they were busy in the kitchen. They were the reason I fell in love with books. When I was a kid, I used to summarise the novels I liked most to my mother. But my most memorable moment about books has to be the one time when my grandmother asked me which Shakespeare play had Miranda as the female protagonist.  She had forgotten the literary details in her old age. After I told her it was The Tempest, she then, remarkably, recited some lines from the play about how there are beautiful people in this brave world.

What was the last book you read and how did you like it?

I am reading two to three books currently; one of them is Lost Histories of Indian Cricket: Battles off the Pitch, by Boria Majumdar. As I am editing a volume on South Asian culture, I am reading books on cricket too from my academic location. I am also reading a couple of other books on South Asian art and history, which I am reading for my research project on South Asia. These books range from the issues of alternative Indian history to the arts of ancient Nepal.

Which book do you want to read next and why?

I am planning to read on the issues of beauty and grotesque in South Asia because I want to write a sequel to my book Goddesses of Kathmandu Valley: Grace, Rage, Knowledge. I hope to conduct some research by reading books on aesthetics and traveling to some places in Nepal and India for it.

What is your favourite genre and why?

I do not have a favourite genre but I read a lot of books on Literary Theory and Postcolonial Studies. They provide methodological insights. One has to work with concepts to comprehend political to artistic matters of a culture. Literary Theory provides you analytical techniques to study culture and politics.

How do you select books to read?

I have no particular criterion for selection. Books tempt me; if they attract me I attract them. Thus it becomes an exclusive love affair.  

Name a book that you would or would not recommend, and why?

Black Skin, White Masks, and The Wretched of the Earth, by Franz Fanon are two of my favourites. Since I read a lot on Postcolonialism, I recommend all of Fanon’s works; his writing is both critical and creative.  

Do you prefer fiction or non-fiction? Why?

I prefer non-fiction but fiction is necessary for me for my profession. Novels and poems engage your critical and creative faculties of mind.

What is good writing for you? What would you say makes a good writer?

When writers threaten the existing status quo, then they are good for me. Good writings challenge our mind-sets or ideologies. I am not saying that a writer should be mean and negative about society but he/she should be able to challenge the dogmas in joyous modes.

How have books affected your life?

Books have made me what I am today. I can’t think of the world without books. They give you worlds which a life of limited experiences can’t give.

One book that inspired you a lot and why?

No single book to tell you the truth.  One book can’t inspire you; the experience we get through reading many books do.

Your advice for general readers?

Books, books, and books! The culture of reading which is incredibly fascinating should be promoted and adapted by everyone. Reading gives you an insight and influences you to grow naturally; like how a leaf grows into a plant.  We become what we are by reading.  

Anything else on books and reading that you want to add?

Fiction or non-fiction, one has to read like a student; with a pencil in hand ready to learn after every sentence. Reading for fun is reading with intensity. You should talk to others on what you have read. And always select books which are good for you. Selection is a matter of experience.