“As soon as we leave the building he lights a cigarette and puffs hungrily. He sags against the wall, spent. I feel pretty much the same, overwhelmed on his behalf,

“This future life is unknown to you. Now at this moment you look up at your unmoving, silent waiting audience. You half-raise your left arm and reach for the cup

“The bird swooped down over them, landing a short distance away, near the dragon. They seemed to know each other, and stood nose to beak for a few seconds, making

“They pick me up from the police station in the early morning. I am not surprised to see them even though it is over a two hundred mile drive and

“A leap away from becoming ghost. She stood erect, her bathing floral suit, sugared marigolds, a petal cap. She knew it wouldn’t last.¡Saltá, mamá!—Jump. Extract from ‘Gnarl’ – included in

“Priest and wise-woman have left him alone with a man whose brothers are afeard to come near him and whose heriot, should he die, will be a five-toed cockerel. At

“The day it happened was a black day. I’d had a good run of late, but still get them sometimes. I’ve learnt to take action otherwise the malaise will fester, so

“As arranged, I met with Satyan in a solitary shack found where the margins of the city met open countryside. ‘Welcome to the Hanuman Chai Shop. This is where I

“Routine was the word. I liked routine, a route to somewhere in time. A rope with which to pull myself along, by sheer force of will, to the other side

Hello, my name is Scruffy, and I’ve lost my blanket. Where can it be? It’s snuggly and warm and smells just like me. I know, I’ll sniff it out! Extract

“The carpet on the stairs is thin and tattered. A thousand shuffling footfalls have worn it bare. The bedroom upstairs has a bed and a chest of drawers, and nothing

“On the road ahead a wagon was on its side. Two German soldiers were on the ground, being treated for injuries. Several others were languishing by the roadside, smoking. A

Sidra stepped forward and looked out again. She looked around apprehensively. She knew she looked awkward but there was nothing she could do about it. Some of the more experienced

“The horror of coming ashore for good. God. A punch in the gut, and an irritation that has her glaring back at his lighthouse for an explanation. Were she and

“Within a year I would not even look at Alec. I seemed hardly to notice him when we drove past the compound in the back of the Land Rover, laughing

“Wadud’s story was entangled in the story of his nation, bookended by the two most important and bloody events in its history, its first birth at the time of independence

“This is the most important secret my father told me: Whenever you are lost, you must turn your shirt inside out.” Extract from ‘Way Back Home’ – included in the

“Noor’s mother wore black and the air was scented with gardenias when they stepped out of the house. They crossed the road holding hands, making their way to Uncle Ali’s

“I put my eye to the peephole and flick the switch on the wall. Inside the room, the ceiling light beams on the grass-green carpet dotted with daisies and on

“Empress Cixi was a woman on a mission, but onlookers in the palace gardens would not have guessed this from the delicate footsteps she took in her silk shoes. The