I don't choose between my house phone and my mobile. I don't choose between my laptop and my notebook. And I don't intend to choose between my e-reader and my bookshelf.

A book is a story, even if it's non-fiction, and once I've read it, I have the story with me inside my head always.

I've always had a keen sense of history. My father was an antiques dealer and he used to bring home boxes full of treasures, and each item always had a tale attached.

The sky was a sparkling succession of black diamonds on black velvet made crystal clear by the blackout.

My father could talk about the Romany way of life and its culture. He could talk about freedom and the Scottish spirit. But that was all he could talk about. I was desperate for someone to talk to but there was just nobody there.

History is full of blank spaces, but good stories, invariably, are not.

Books exist for me not as physical entities with pages and binding, but in the province of my mind.