In the third episode of Books of My Life season two, host Hareth Al Bustani interviews Indian historian, journalist and author Shrabani Basu.

The truly great history writer walks a fine line between dramatisation and documentation – a balance Basu has mastered admirably.

Basu famously wrote Victoria and Abdul, a historical novel later adapted into a feature film. Somewhat of a sleuth herself, she also wrote a fascinating account of Arthur Conan Doyle’s efforts to rescue a Parsi lawyer from injustice.

In the episode, Al Bustani and Basu discuss the remarkable correlations between history and journalism, and why the best history writers have to be both.