And your favorite book in your collection?
That's a very difficult question! If I had to choose, I'd probably say Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman and Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea series. They're books I've returned to many times over the years, and each reread feels a little different.
How do you organize your collection?
I organize my books by genre. I do my best to keep everything in order, although the books inevitably seem to wander beyond the boundaries I've set for them and make friends with their neighbours on other shelves.
Best bargain you've found?
Two of my favourite bargains came from the Daryaganj Sunday Book Market in Delhi, where I found first edition hardback copies of The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy (1905) and Aunt Bell: The Good Fairy of the Family by Henley I. Arden, illustrated by Rosa C. Petherick, published around 1910. Both have beautiful decorative covers and spines, and I bought them together for Rs. 100.
How about The One that Got Away?
I can't really think of a book that got away, but there are a few books I've loved for years and somehow never bought for myself. At the top of that list is The Sword of Kaigen by M. L. Wang, which I have my eye on.
What would be the Holy Grail for your collection?
At the moment, it would probably be Eye Spy Indigenous Art by Likla Lall, with illustrations by Rohina Thapar and Shambhavi Thakur. It’s a beautiful introduction to India's folk and tribal painting traditions, and I love books that combine scholarship, illustration, and interactive design.
Where do you most often find books for your collection?
I love browsing second-hand book markets like Daryaganj in Delhi and College Street in Kolkata. I also try to follow small presses and independent bookshops, especially Woodland Pattern here in Milwaukee. I also enjoy collecting zines, so you'll often find me at events like the Milwaukee Zine Fest and Stockport Zine Fest.
What would you collect if you didn't collect books?
I'd probably collect seashells. Some of my favourite memories are of visiting beaches with friends, picking up shells, and learning about them together. Fittingly, a book was responsible for that interest too, Sea Snails of Pondicherry by Fred Pinn. Ever since reading it, I've wanted to become, in Pinn's wonderful phrase, "the average sea snail enjoyer".
