As a writer I am frequently asked what books have influenced my work the most. Here is a summary of some of my favorite writers and books.

I read my first Agatha Christie book as a teenager when I picked one up at a train station in Dusseldorf on my way across Germany to a little town called Zerbst. (Yes, that is my last name, and yes, there is a story behind my trip there which you can read about in my blog.) Ever since then, I have gone on periodic Agatha Christie reading binges. To me, she is as addictive as a potato chip. I can never put down her books. While on a binge, I’ve been known to escape to the bathroom to read her books while I was supposed to be socializing at a party. She is the defining classic murder mystery writer. There is good reason why her books are the third most widely sold in the world, after only the bible and Shakespeare.

I have read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert several times. Each time I read it, when I pull it out I feel as excited as I do about spending time with an old friend. Gilbert’s bare honesty, casual language, humor, and wise insights make her immensely approachable and relatable. It certainly helps that the book is set in three irresistible locations. What’s more, each time I read it, I get something different out of it—almost as if it were an entirely different, entirely new story. Though, of course, it is I who come to it with an entirely new set of experiences since the last time I read it. When I read it, I laugh, I reflect, I dream. I just love it.

Though I have read all of Jane Austen’s books at least once, Emma remains my favorite. Every time I squeal with delight and apprehension at the development of her romance with Mr. Knightly. Every time I read it I feel like I am visiting (yet another!) old and charming friend, one who every year is younger and younger than I, but whose bright character reminds me of youth and hope – and matchmaking. Need I mention the beauty of Austen’s prose?

A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemmingway never fails to stir deep emotions and keep me hooked every time I read it. For me it remains in a category of books with a high combination of artistry and impactful story. Hemmingway’s use of simple language and powerful images helped shape my writing style.

I am addicted to Harry Potter. I have read all of the books several times. When the last book came out, I took an entire vacation just to read it. (I drove down the Pacific Coast Highway from San Francisco reading mostly on misty, craggy, rocky beaches—a perfect setting….)   What do I love about them? Oh, it is the page turning story, the characters so real I feel like they are in my living room, it is the absorbing and engaging world of Hogwarts, full of charm, surprises and humor, and the page turning intrigue and pace of the story. Really, what is there not to love about them?

On a very different note, I must include Hiroshima, by John Hersey on the list of favorites. I first read this piece of non-fiction when I was twelve. Everyone should read this book. Hersey brings the reader to Hiroshima after its obliteration by an atomic bomb in 1945 through the voices of six survivors of the attack. If there is anything to read which illustrates the gruesome power of nuclear weapons and why the Cold War was so terrifying, it is this book. There is no doubt that reading Hiroshima shaped my life-long fascination with international affairs and the Cold War.

I read The Little Prince (in French) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry every year, and every year it means something different to me. And every year it brings me to tears. And every year its simplicity, isolation and resonance, leaves me staring at life in a newly profound and poetic way. And I like his hair. It’s kind of like mine.

Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky matches A Farewell Arms both in beauty and power. She tells a tale of several individuals trying to survive the German occupation of France during World War Two. (Have you noticed the World War Two theme yet in these books?) Her voice is intimate, rich, transporting, and her stories heartbreaking – as is her own true-life story. Her work deserves, in my opinion, the same stature and recognition as Hemmingway’s.

Because The Mooncake Messenger is set in Hong Kong I feel compelled to add two marvelous books which are also set there. I discovered both books in the course of my research and both share qualities I appreciate in literature – beautiful prose, compelling characters, and page-turning stories – and, in this case, an exotic setting now long gone to history.

Golden Boy: Memories of a Hong Kong Childhood (sometimes published as Gweilo: Memories of a Hong Kong Childhood) by Martin Booth is a memoir of growing up in Hong Kong in the 1950s. His humor and his rich descriptions made this a delightful read and an appreciated resource for me in recreating Hong Kong in this time period.

I had not expected to love The World of Suzy Wong by Richard Mason. I guess this in part was due to the fact that the story is about prostitution and that Suzy Wong is a prolific name of bars in seedy neighborhoods in Asia. The story, however, blew me away, not only because of how it was written, but the characters – in their flaws, their innocence, their callouses, their reality, their hopes – were immensely real and exquisitely created. That the book was set in Hong Kong became almost irrelevant in my appreciation of this story.

I should also add here that several of the characters in my book are named after writers. Those writers are: F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Golding, Thomas Hardy, Maxine Hong Kingston, Amy Tan, and Edith Wharton.