“What happens is my mind starts to go in circles, thinking and thinking, and then I can't sleep. And once a couple of days go by, if you haven't slept, you start to get sick. You can't eat. You start to cry. It just feeds on itself.”

Pakistani novelist and essayist of the 2000s and beyond, Hamid blends fiction with social critique. His work explores globalization, class, and identity, often through layered narratives that reflect contemporary South Asian experiences. *The Reluctant Fundamentalist* and *Exit West* are among his most widely discussed novels.