Neha and Shruti discuss all 8 books we've covered over the last few months, and talk about themes that emerged - getting a little nerdy along the way. We also discuss the Booker prize, throw some shade at the Oscars, and share more book recommendations around the theme of borders.

This episode is spoiler free!

Books mentioned:

Culture and Imperialism by Edward Said

Termush by Sven Holm

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib

They Called Us Exceptional by Prachi Gupta

The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee

The Laughter by Sonora Jha

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We love to hear from listeners about the books we discuss - you can connect with us on Instagram or by emailing us at thenovelteapod@gmail.com.

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Neha and Shruti discuss The Parisian by Isabella Hammad, a book that follows Midhat Kamal, a Palestinian man, between the First and Second World Wars. We talk about the 19th century European novel, prominent themes we noticed in the book, and our thoughts on the characters and their development. We also get into the historical context of the events unfolding in the book.

Links

IsraelPalestine For Critical Thinkers on Youtube

Empire Podcast [Apple Podcasts] [Spotify]

Books Mentioned & Shelf Discovery

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Sentimental Education by Gustave Flaubert

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits by Laila Lalami

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

Our Riches by Kaouther Adimi

If you would like to get additional behind-the-scenes content related to this and all of our episodes, subscribe to our free newsletter.

We love to hear from listeners about the books we discuss - you can connect with us on Instagram or by emailing us at thenovelteapod@gmail.com.

This episode description contains links to Bookshop.org, a website that supports independent bookstores. If you use these links we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

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This week we are so excited to invite Sri Ramesh of Brown Girl Bookshelf to chat with us! Last week, Neha and Shruti got into some of their critiques of The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida, and this week, Sri is here to tell us what she loved about. Will she change our minds?

We also talk more broadly about Sri Lankan literature, the Booker prize, book endings, and our reading idiosyncrasies.

Links

What Makes a Book a 'Classic'? [The Novel Tea Newsletter archive]

Books

A Passage North by Anuk Arudpragasam

Story of a Brief Marriage by Anuk Arudpragasam

Brotherless Night by V. V. Ganeshanathan

The Year of the Runaways by Sunjeev Sahota

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

Goodbye Vitamin by Rachel Khong

Bird Milk & Mosquito Bones: A Memoir by Priyanka Mattoo

A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry

The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates

The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton

The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy

Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar

Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens by Shankari Chandran

If you would like to get additional behind-the-scenes content related to this and all of our episodes, subscribe to our free newsletter.

We love to hear from listeners about the books we discuss - you can connect with us on Instagram or by emailing us at thenovelteapod@gmail.com.

This episode description contains links to Bookshop.org, a website that supports independent bookstores. If you use these links we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Neha and Shruti discuss The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida, a book that starts with the death of a photographer and follows him in the afterlife as he attempts to find his murderer and his missing photographs. We talk about the nature of death and the afterlife, and share historical context about the Sri Lankan Civil War. We also explore why people might be afraid to critize books, particularly works by marginalized communities.

Books mentioned & Shelf Discovery

Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton

The Great Indian Novel by Shashi Tharoor

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

If you would like to get additional behind-the-scenes content related to this and all of our episodes, subscribe to our free newsletter.

We love to hear from listeners about the books we discuss - you can connect with us on Instagram or by emailing us at thenovelteapod@gmail.com.

This episode description contains links to Bookshop.org, a website that supports independent bookstores. If you use these links we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Neha and Shruti discuss Another Country by James Baldwin, a book that follows a group of friends and lovers in New York City in the mid-20th century. We talk about the characters and their relationships, the inaction that fills the novel, and the importance of having 'difficult' conversations with the people you love. We also go on a brief Gossip Girl tangent as we attempt to better understand the characters in this book :)

Links:

Another Country by Claudia Roth Pierpont [The New Yorker]

Jazz by Toni Morrison: violence and ambition [The Novel Tea]

Books mentioned & Shelf Discovery:

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

Jazz by Toni Morrison

The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway

If you would like to get additional behind-the-scenes content related to this and all of our episodes, subscribe to our free newsletter.

We love to hear from listeners about the books we discuss - you can connect with us on Instagram or by emailing us at thenovelteapod@gmail.com.

This episode description contains links to Bookshop.org, a website that supports independent bookstores. If you use these links we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Neha and Shruti discuss Daughters of the Deer, by Danielle Daniel, a work of historical fiction that follows an indigenous woman and her daughter in a 17th century French colony that is now Quebec, Canada. We talk about the historical context of the book, discuss the characters and their journeys, and reflect on the importance of telling these stories.

Shelf Discovery:

East by Edith Pattou

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

Hope Leslie; Or Early Times in Massachusetts by Catharine Maria Sedgwick

If you would like to get additional behind-the-scenes content related to this and all of our episodes, subscribe to our free newsletter.

We love to hear from listeners about the books we discuss - you can connect with us on Instagram or by emailing us at thenovelteapod@gmail.com.

This episode description contains links to Bookshop.org, a website that supports independent bookstores. If you use these links we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.