Shelf Reflection: Yumna Kassab

What kind of reader are you? 

Voracious and obsessive are two words that come to mind. I mainly read fiction but I find myself rereading the same non-fiction books again and again. I read non-fiction slowly, a few pages a day. As for fiction, I will read by writer. I will go through stages. I had an Albert Camus stage. Then there was Haruki Murakami, Neil Gaiman, Jean Rhys, James Baldwin, Don Delillo and Jorge Luis Borges. If I love a particular writer, I’ll always leave one book unread, in case of a rainy day or a zombie apocalypse. Before implementing this rule, I foolishly read everything by Bret Easton Ellis, Cheryl Strayed and Sylvia Plath. 

 Never mind. One can always reread.  

If I love a particular writer, I’ll always leave one book unread, in case of a rainy day or a zombie apocalypse.

What does your book collection look like? 

My collection is currently divided between two locations: Sydney and a regional place.  

I organise by writer and by genre. My science-fiction books live together, my children’s books have their own shelf, Christopher Pike has a full-blown shrine. All of Jean Rhys lives comfortably with Jeanette Winterson, Janet Frame, Angela Carter and Joan Didion (who is currently travelling away from my main library in Sydney). All the poets are in one spot and there is a section devoted to mythology and fairytales.  

 I usually have a good idea where a book is, but my collection’s divided nature means I have to think carefully about what books I exchange each time I come to Sydney.  

What’s one book you found critical to the writing of your own book? 

It would have to be Less Than Zero by Bret Easton Ellis. I return to this book every year. I have read it at least ten times and I always want to know how he achieves its effect of absolute numbness and apathy of people drifting in their world. In terms of technique, Bret Easton Ellis is one of my three favourite writers. The other two are Joan Didion and Don DeLillo. They are writers who are precise with their words. They are a massive influence on my shorter stories, especially the ‘Motherland’ and ‘The House of Youssef’ sequences. There are the essential details and then a lot of blanks.  

If you had to pick one book to live in for the rest of your life, which would it be? 

My choice would be Women Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés. This is my desert island book. I carry this book on my travels. Estés takes fairy tales and interprets them within a Jungian psychology framework. I love the symbols in fairy tales and myths, and this book delves into the symbols of very old stories.  

 My story ‘Burning the Flag’ is about symbols. A flag is a symbol, a headscarf is another one. A person needs symbols to help navigate life and the world. Books have provided me with many of the symbols and signposts along the way.