BEST AUTHOR BEST : DEBORAH HARKNESS

 

The author of the '' All Souls '' series, whose new book is '' The Black Bird Oracle,'' has never read Jane Austen : '' I fear I will be drummed out of the Novelists' Corps.''

.-  What books are on your night stand?

I'm working my way through a delicious pile of historical nonfiction titles : 

'' Shakespeare's Book,'' by Chris Laoutaris; '' All That She Carried, '' by Tiya Miles; and '' Secret Voices,'' a wonderful collection of excerpts from women's diaries, edited by Sarah Gristwood.

The passages are arranged by date, and I read that day's entries each night. It's fascinating to read about someone's day centuries ago.

.-  Describe your ideal reading experience.

In the morning, in Duke Humfrey's Library in Oxford, with a 16th century manuscript in front of me, deciphering each word.

.-  How did your reading life change as you were recovering from cancer?

I couldn't escape from fictional worlds as I'd hoped, but was surprisingly drawn to biographies and diaries, which I found inspiring and comforting, especially World War II diaries. 

If people survived the Blitz in London, surely I could survive cancer.

.-  Did illness have an influence on the story you tell in the new book?

Absolutely. Ironically. I've been writing for years about fictional characters with genetic mutation.

Once doctors diagnosed me as having the BRCA gene mutation and the ovarian cancer that in my case goes with it, I wanted to dive back into family history in '' The Black Bird Oracle.''

.-  You're a professor of history at the University of Southern California. What's your favorite academic novel?

A.S. Byatt's ''Possessions'' is the greatest single influence on my fiction, with its academic protagonist, historical elements, missing texts and love of scholarship.

.-  What's the best book you've ever received as a gift?

The illustrated hardcover copy of Louisa May Alcott's ''Little Women.'' It was a gift from grandmother, and I still give it pride of place in my book shelves.

.-  What's the best book that a student turned you onto?

I can't bring one to mind. But as an undergraduate, my honors thesis advisers suggested I read '' The Game of Kings,'' by Dorothy Dunnett.

They waited until after I'd filed for my degree and it's a good thing, because I devoured the entire series in the space of weeks.

Like ''Possession,'' Dunnett's series casts a long shadow on the '' All Souls '' books.

.-  What book would you like to see turned into a movie or a TV show?

I cannot fathom why the aforementioned '' Game of Kings,'' a sprawling, sexy, action-packed historical epic, hasn't been adapted for the screen. If anyone reading this wants to produce it, please call me to  write the screenplay.

The World Students Society thanks The New York Times.