Woody Allen says he takes S. J. Perelman on every flight

Woody Allen has long drawn on literature to fuel his work and steady his nerves in the air. In a recent interview, the filmmaker and writer said that whenever he boards a plane, he never travels without a copy of the writings of S. J. Perelman. "Whenever I take a flight, I’m never without a copy of the Perelman collection," he said, explaining that the humor of Perelman keeps him engaged even when nerves rise during turbulence. He added that reading helps him keep up his end of conversations with the literate partners he has dated: "I read to be able to compete in the world and keep up my end of the conversation with the women I started dating, who were literate and, invariably, quite intellectual."

Allen also discussed his appetite for wartime literature. He said The Garden Of Beasts by Erik Larson is the book he is reading now and that he is always fascinated by books on the Third Reich. "I’m always fascinated by books on the Third Reich. I’m sure I’ve read practically all the books on the lead up to the Second World War and its war criminals. I’ve read biographies of Hitler and Stalin, as well as the memoir by Albert Speer, Hitler’s Armaments Minister and right-hand man." He referenced a remark about publishing trends: years ago someone did a study on which books sold the most, noting that books on cats, Nazis and golf are among the biggest bestsellers. He recalled the cheeky satire Golfing For Cats with a swastika on the cover, a title he almost bought. "The book I’m reading now, I read years ago. It’s so riveting that it’s compelling to read again."

Asked what he would take to a desert island, Allen said he would want all the collections he could get – or any single collection – of the writings of S. J. Perelman. "There’s no funnier writer who ever lived and I continually read him for inspiration," he said, underscoring Perelman’s influence on his humor and craft. He noted that his early reading included J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher In The Rye: "Early pleasure was found in J. D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye."

Left you cold? Books that are often taught for whole semesters by college professors aren’t much fun for him. He singled out James Joyce’s Finnegans Wake and Ulysses (to a lesser degree but still not much fun for me), and any number of modern novels that don’t have a straightforward, human-centered story he cares about.

In addition to his longstanding literary interests, Allen’s latest publication, What’s With Baum? By Woody Allen (Swift Press, £18.99), is available now from the Mail Bookshop.