A Deep Bow to Mombasa (and Sea Monsters): A Conversation with Khadija Abdalla Bajaber, by Anderson Tepper

Interviews Khadija Abdalla Bajaber’s astonishing debut novel, The House of Rust, winner of the inaugural Graywolf Press Africa Prize, arrived in October as if on a magical wave, imbued with an assortment of creatures—human and animal, real and imagined—that populate the city of Mombasa and its surrounding waters. Aisha, fierce and adventurous, sets off on a boat made of bones in hopes of rescuing her fisherman father who has disappeared at sea. What she encounters on her search—and return home—will enthrall and amaze. “On the surface this is a limpid tale,” writes author A. Igoni Barrett, the prize’s judge, “but it is eddied and enriched by what lurks beneath the surface of both the sea and the prose. Everything in this story sparkles.” I spoke with Bajaber about Mombasa, sea monsters, and Aisha’s journey of self-discovery, among other things. Anderson Tepper: Congratulations, Khadija. I’m curious about the story of your book’s path to publication. Did it change much since being awarded Graywolf’s Africa Prize in 2018? Khadija Abdalla Bajaber: Thank you very much. Well, it definitely changed and grew. When I’d first finished working on the book, it ended at what is now actually the midpoint. I was quite happy with that ending at the time but was already beginning to rethink things. There were subplots I’d set up at the beginning that needed resolving. So then I started developing everything more; and toward the end, when... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'

[ World Literature Today | 2021-11-15 21:42:08 UTC ]
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Emily St. John Mandel’s ‘Sea of Tranquility’ is a mind-bending novel

"Station Eleven" author Emily St. John Mandel explores time travel and the nature of reality. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2022-04-12 13:40:01 UTC ]
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“I Write about People Whose Lives Are on Fire”: A Conversation with Sandra Cisneros, by Emily Doyle

Interviews   Sandra Cisneros’s success as a poet, short-story writer, novelist, and essayist is tied to her determination to write about others with awareness and love. Her work is populated by powerful people—powerful in their pain, joy, and hunger for... Continue reading at World Literature Today

[ World Literature Today | 2022-04-01 16:29:13 UTC ]
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Register Today for AAPI Communities in Conversation #4 Featuring Top Chef Sheldon Simeon

Registration is still open for the fourth installment in the AAPI Communities in Conversation series, featuring Sheldon Simeon, author of 'Cook Real Hawai’i' in conversation with Michelle Young, from the Waimea Public Library. The live stream is set for Tuesday, April 5, at 1 p.m. ET. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-04-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Exclusive cover reveal: Elizabeth Strout’s Lucy by the Sea.

Lit Hub is pleased to reveal the cover for Pulitzer-winning author Elizabeth Strout’s latest novel Lucy by the Sea, which will be published by Random House this September. In Lucy by the Sea, Strout follows Lucy—the protagonist of My Name is Lucy Barton and Oh William!—through the early days of... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-03-22 18:56:21 UTC ]
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AAPI Communities in Conversation #3: Sara Desai and Jen Frederick

In the third discussion in the series, which streamed live on March 1, Sara Desai, author of 'The Singles Table,' and Jen Frederick, author of 'Seoulmates,' spoke with Las Vegas-Clark County Librarian Seungyeon (Sue) Yang-Peace. Watch here, and register today for the next event! Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-03-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Register Today for AAPI Communities in Conversation #3 Featuring Sara Desai & Jen Frederick

The third installment in the AAPI Communities in Conversation series will feature Sara Desai, author of 'The Singles Table' and Jen Frederick, author of 'Seoulmates' in conversation with librarian Seungyeon (Sue) Yang-Peace from the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District. The live stream is set... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-17 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Nepal and Pan-Nepalese Identity: A Conversation with Samrat Upadhyay, by Koushik Goswami

Interviews For many years, better opportunities on foreign shores, political turmoil, and the Maoist insurgency in Nepal have contributed to a large-scale migration to foreign countries. Many Nepalese writers, now settled in the West, have begun writing... Continue reading at World Literature Today

[ World Literature Today | 2022-02-14 22:32:24 UTC ]
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Books overboard! Supply chain headaches leave publishing all at sea

Containers full of books at the bottom of the ocean are just one problem for an industry facing a host of shortagesThe supply chain crisis over the last year has caused quite a splash for the book publishing industry – literally.In early January, a large shipping vessel coming from Taiwan was... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-02-07 07:00:04 UTC ]
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Take an early peek at Hulu’s adaptation of Conversations With Friends.

At the risk of reigniting the Sally Rooney Discourse—today, Hulu and BBC Three released a few early images from their upcoming adaptation of Sally Rooney’s bestselling first novel Conversations With Friends, which will premiere sometime this spring. (If you somehow don’t know what this novel is... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-02-04 13:53:52 UTC ]
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Recipe for disaster: first runs of two new cookbooks lost at sea

A container collapse in the mid-Atlantic earlier this month sank copies of Mason Hereford’s Turkey and the Wolf and Melissa Clark’s Dinner in OneThere are two highly anticipated new cookbooks that won’t be troubling Pinch of Nom’s position at the top of the charts any time soon – after they sank... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-01-31 16:44:26 UTC ]
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Trapeze wins four-way auction for Arthanayake’s conversation guide

Trapeze has signed Nihal Arthanayake’s "game-changing" Let’s Talk: How to Have Better Conversations following a four-way auction.   Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2022-01-25 22:13:43 UTC ]
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Register Today for AAPI Communities in Conversation #2, Featuring Gina Apostol

Apostol, whose latest novel 'Bibliolepsy' earned a starred review from Publisher Weekly, will appear in conversation with librarian Jenna Rae Cabrera from the San Francisco Public Library on Tuesday, February 1, at 1:00 p.m. ET. Registration is free! Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-01-21 05:00:00 UTC ]
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A Novel of Old Shanghai: In Conversation with Weina Dai Randel, by Susan Blumberg-Kason

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[ World Literature Today | 2022-01-20 14:33:49 UTC ]
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AAPI Communities in Conversation #1: Sujata Massey and Naomi Hirahara

In the inaugural discussion, which streamed live on January 4, 2022, Adrienne Cruz of the Azusa City (California) Library spoke with Naomi Hirahara, author of 'Clark & Division,' and Sujata Massey, author of 'The Bombay Prince.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-01-07 05:00:00 UTC ]
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What Is Autobiography? A Conversation with Debut Memoirist Victoria Chang, by Amy Wright

Interviews Victoria Chang’s new collection, Dear Memory, expands the field of the memoir for readers to explore a full-color archive of family photos and historical documents collaged between lines of poetry and letters. It prompts us to ask, with her,... Continue reading at World Literature Today

[ World Literature Today | 2022-01-05 19:50:39 UTC ]
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How mountains, rivers and seas shape the fates of nations

Geography’s role in wars and politics shows the world isn’t “flat,” Tim Marshall writes. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2021-12-03 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Reading Reality through the Imagination: In Conversation with Enrique Vila-Matas, by Anna María Iglesia

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[ World Literature Today | 2021-11-29 21:46:44 UTC ]
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Wildfire lands 'humorous deep-dive' into royal deaths throughout history by Edge

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[ The Bookseller | 2021-11-09 16:32:23 UTC ]
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Sharjah Book Fair’s Guest of Honor Spain: ‘Our Roots are Deep and Close’

Stressing that culture is a bridge between nations, Spain opens its guest of honor program at Sharjah International Book Fair. The post Sharjah Book Fair’s Guest of Honor Spain: ‘Our Roots are Deep and Close’ appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-11-05 17:33:29 UTC ]
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Deep Vellum to Relaunch Dalkey Archive in April 2022

The relaunch will comprise a series of reissued backlist titles and the publication of frontlist fiction. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-11-03 04:00:00 UTC ]
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