Borges was an erudite and voracious reader. His intellectual interests were wide and far reaching. He was a student of the Kabala, Oriental and preSocratic philosophy, medieval thought, and Icelandic literature. Insights from his investigations often made their way into his creative writing, giving it a learned and austere tone. He was also an admirer of Edgar Allan Poe and G. K. Chesterton, whose mystery and detective stories Borges emulated, and of H. G. Wells's scientific fiction.