25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
V.E. Schwab's Desert Island Book Is ‘The Count of Monte Cristo'
In an email interview, the author of the triple-timeline lesbian vampire novel our critic called 'sumptuous' challenged the notion that 'storytelling is a zero-sum game.' SCOTT HELLER
How have your reading tastes changed over time?
I've gotten both harder to please, and much more evangelical about anything that delights and surprises me. I've also reached the point where I'm far more interested in a story that takes swings and misses than one that doesn't try. Give me weird. Give me ambitious. Give me original.
What's the last great book you read?
You can't possibly expect me to pick one. 'James,' by Percival Everett. 'Jade City,' by Fonda Lee. 'Rejection,' by Tony Tulathimutte.
What's your go-to classic?
'The Count of Monte Cristo,' by Dumas. It's my desert island book, not only because it's a tome, but because no matter how many times I revisit it, I find new lines to appreciate, new narrative corners to explore.
Did attending an all-girls high school shape your sensibility as a writer?
It might not have shaped my storytelling, but it shaped my belief that I could only be limited by my own ambition. Not that anything would be easy, but that no external voice would ever be as loud as my internal one.
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