This paranoid Islam, which blames outsider, 'infidels', for all the ills of Muslim societies, and whose proposed remedy is the closing of those societies to the rival project of modernity, is presently the fastest growing version of Islam in the world.

In the '50s, listening to Elvis and others on the radio in Bombay - it didn't feel alien. Noises made by a truck driver from Tupelo, Mississippi, seemed relevant to a middle-class kid growing up on the other side of the world. That has always fascinated me.

I have had many more close women friends than men, and I've always assumed that comes from the fact that in my family there was such a disproportionate female element.

Sometimes writing a novel is not unlike having a baby. You'd have to ask a female novelist to compare the pain.

My favourite place is at home with my family. My career is really raising my children. I'm still waiting for clarity on the future.

I'm just glad that I get to talk about the superstar, my mentor - Marcus Mariota. That's who I try to be like. He's been a big inspiration to me and my family. I couldn't thank God more for him being bestowed into my life.

Our family is very, very competitive. But it's a fun and inspiring sort of competitive. It makes you proud of what you do and makes you want to work hard and do all your homework so you can win.

You can't live in the Bronx and survive on just $80,000 or so of income, if you're married and you have three kids at home.