#megha majumdar

[haveyoureadthistransbook]

A Burning by Megha Majumdar

goodreads

Jivan is a Muslim girl from the slums, determined to move up in life, who is accused of executing a terrorist attack on a train because of a careless comment on Facebook. PT Sir is an opportunistic gym teacher who hitches his aspirations to a right-wing political party, and finds that his own ascent becomes linked to Jivan's fall. Lovely--an irresistible outcast whose exuberant voice and dreams of glory fill the novel with warmth and hope and humor--has the alibi that can set Jivan free, but it will cost her everything she holds dear. Taut, symphonic, propulsive, and riveting from its opening lines, A Burning has the force of an epic while being so masterfully compressed it can be read in a single sitting. Majumdar writes with dazzling assurance at a breakneck pace on complex themes that read here as the components of a thriller: class, fate, corruption, justice, and what it feels like to face profound obstacles and yet nurture big dreams in a country spinning toward extremism. An extraordinary debut.

Mod opinion: I haven't heard of this novel before, but it sounds quite interesting!

[the-final-sentence]

They will watch, wide-eyed, the one movie that plays in the theater on their half day off from carpentry or construction or cleaning bathrooms, while PT Sir, in the government office’s special elevator, moves upward.

Megha Majumdar, from A Burning

[skyler-reads28]

Titles That Start With A pt. 1

Happy Wednesday book friends! Just wanted to share a little from my personal book shelf, starting with books that start with A.

Archer’s Voice by Mia Sheridan - 4/5 ⭐️

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr - TBR

Aristotle and Dante by Benjamin Alire Sáenz - 5/5⭐️

A Burning by Megha Majumdar - 3/5 ⭐️

All Our Hidden Gifts by Caroline O’Donoghue - 3/5⭐️

A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz - TBR

[belle-keys]

Litfic by Women of Colour for starters: 10 Recommendations

Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Yellowface by RF Kuang

A Burning by Megha Majumdar

Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh

Earthlings by Sayaka Murata

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

Violeta by Isabel Allende

If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

[rockislandadultreads]

First Novels Exploring Social Media

A Burning by Megha Majumdar

Jivan is a Muslim girl from the slums, determined to move up in life, who is accused of executing a terrorist attack on a train because of a careless comment on Facebook. PT Sir is an opportunistic gym teacher who hitches his aspirations to a right-wing political party, and finds that his own ascent becomes linked to Jivan's fall. Lovely - an irresistible outcast whose exuberant voice and dreams of glory fill the novel with warmth and hope and humor - has the alibi that can set Jivan free, but it will cost her everything she holds dear.

Taut, symphonic, propulsive, and riveting from its opening lines, A Burning has the force of an epic while being so masterfully compressed it can be read in a single sitting.

Fake Accounts by Lauren Oyler

On the eve of Donald Trump's inauguration, a young woman snoops through her boyfriend's phone and makes a startling discovery: he's an anonymous internet conspiracy theorist, and a popular one at that. Already fluent in internet fakery, irony, and outrage, she's not exactly shocked by the revelation. Actually, she's relieved—he was always a little distant—and she plots to end their floundering relationship while on a trip to the Women's March in DC. But this is only the first in a series of bizarre twists that expose a world whose truths are shaped by online lies.

Suddenly left with no reason to stay in New York and increasingly alienated from her friends and colleagues, our unnamed narrator flees to Berlin, embarking on her own cycles of manipulation in the deceptive spaces of her daily life, from dating apps to expat meetups, open-plan offices to bureaucratic waiting rooms. She begins to think she can't trust anyone - shouldn't the feeling be mutual?

People Like Her by Ellery Lloyd

Followed by Millions, Watched by One

To her adoring fans, Emmy Jackson, aka @the_mamabare, is the honest “Instamum” who always tells it like it is. 

To her skeptical husband, a washed-up novelist who knows just how creative Emmy can be with the truth, she is a breadwinning powerhouse chillingly brilliant at monetizing the intimate details of their family life.

To one of Emmy’s dangerously obsessive followers, she’s the woman that has everything—but deserves none of it.  

As Emmy’s marriage begins to crack under the strain of her growing success and her moral compass veers wildly off course, the more vulnerable she becomes to a very real danger circling ever closer to her family.

The List by Yomi Adegoke

Ola Olajide, a celebrated journalist at Womxxxn magazine, is set to marry the love of her life in one month’s time. Young, beautiful, and successful—she and her fiancé Michael are considered the “couple goals” of their social network and seem to have it all. That is, until one morning when they both wake up to the same message: “Oh my god, have you seen The List?”

It began as a crowdsourced collection of names and somehow morphed into an anonymous account posting allegations on social media. Ola would usually be the first to support such a list—she’d retweet it, call for the men to be fired, write article after article. Except this time, Michael’s name is on it.

[symptomofloves]

14 + 18? 💓

14. what books do you want to finish before the year is over?

well, i just started everybody by olivia laing this morning, but apart from that i would like to read small things like these by claire keegan, moon of the crusted snow by waubgeshig rice, slouching towards bethlehem by joan didion, & lanny by max porter. not sure if i'll manage that before the end of the year though because finals are keeping me busy!

18. how many books did you buy?

i'm not sure, but probably no more than ten because most of the books i read are from the library or from my bookshelf. i think most of my purchases this year were for my post-colonial literature course in the winter: discourse on colonialism by aimé césaire, haroun & the sea of stories by salman rushdie, baumgartner's bombay by anita desai & a burning by megha majumdar.

[murderballadeer]

21, 22 & 23!

21 - 3 things you are the most passionate about sewing, music, and the concept of oral histories & folk traditions!

22 - 3 movies/books/tv shows that made you cry i always cry when reading anne of green gables and little women, and then i also cried recently when reading the novel a burning by megha majumdar

23 - 3 songs you listen to while cleaning just gonna pick 3 from my current playlist: cowboy take me away by the chicks, fast car by tracy chapman, and guitar town by steve earle

[nerdby]

Library Haul

A Burning by Megha Majumdar and The Last Island: Discovery, Defiance, & The Most Elusive Tribe On Earth by Adam Goodheart

Am currently reading The Last Island which is a nonfiction book about a dude who travels to the Adaman and Nicobar Islands to study the Sentinelese of North Sentinel Island. The Sentinelese are the most isolated tribe of indigenous people on earth. That we know of.

And fun fact -- it seems the inhabitants of the Adaman and Nicobar Islands were the inspiration for the Oompa Loompas in Charlie & The Chocolate Factory. Pretty early on in the book, Goodheart goes into detail about how the Adamanese were described by historians as dark-skinned pygmies. So yeah.....See if you can't connect the dots.

[narrators-universe]

A Burning

"A Burning" is a novel written by Megha Majumdar, published in 2020. The story is set in contemporary India and revolves around three main characters whose lives become intertwined in the aftermath of a terrorist attack.

The narrative follows the perspectives of Jivan, a young Muslim woman from a slum who gets accused of being involved in the terrorist attack; Lovely, a transgender woman and aspiring actress who becomes a witness in Jivan's case; and PT Sir, a physical education teacher with political ambitions.

As the story unfolds, "A Burning" explores themes of power, justice, social inequality, and the impact of social media on society. Jivan's case becomes a focal point, revealing the biases, corruption, and systemic injustice prevalent in the Indian criminal justice system. It also delves into the complexities of identity, examining the challenges faced by marginalized individuals like Lovely and the compromises made by PT Sir in his pursuit of political success.

Through the characters' journeys, Megha Majumdar highlights the pervasive influence of social media, shedding light on its ability to shape public opinion, manipulate narratives, and exploit personal vulnerabilities. The novel explores the tension between truth and perception in the digital age, offering a critique of the power dynamics at play.

"A Burning" delves into the lives of its characters with a sense of urgency, portraying their hopes, dreams, and struggles in a society marked by inequality and political unrest. It examines the choices they make and the consequences they face as they navigate a landscape filled with corruption, social divisions, and the pursuit of personal aspirations.

The novel received critical acclaim for its compelling storytelling, vivid characterizations, and its exploration of social and political themes relevant to contemporary India. It offers readers an insightful and thought-provoking perspective on the complexities of modern society, justice, and the aspirations of individuals striving for a better life.

[slightly-misguided]

October: Book in Review

October: Book in Review

Hey Everyone! I hope you all are doing well!! Per my last post we are all aware that I am writing these a little late. But it’s fine. I’m just going to jump right into this post to let you know what book I read in October. This month there was only one book and I’m proud of myself for doing so! Alright, let’s get into it GoodReads Challenge Update: 10/12 A Burning  by Megha Majumdar from…

[straydog733]

Reading Resolution: “A Burning” by Megha Majumdar

5. A book written in South Asia: A Burning by Megha Majumdar

List Progress: 14/30

Everyone wants to make some mark on the world; to find some foothold to let them work towards prominence. But so often in this world, getting somewhere involves stepping on people along the way, a conundrum which is painfully and deliberately portrayed in Megha Majumdar’s 2020 debut novel A Burning.

A deadly terrorist attack takes place at a train station, and a poor young Muslim woman named Jivan is in the wrong place at the wrong time. She had nothing to do with the attack, but when she makes a mildly subversive comment on Facebook, she becomes the police’s scapegoat. Among her potential defenders are her former gym teacher, PT Sir, and a hijra she has been tutoring in English, Lovely, but both of them have their own goals that would be compromised by ties with an accused terrorist. PT Sir is being pulled under the sway of a nationalist political party, Lovely is trying to make a name for herself as a film star, and neither of them want to let sentiment stand in the way of their chances for a better life. It is a deeply cynical way to view the world, but Majumdar shows every step of their decisions and lets the reader walk in their shoes. You want to say you would be better than that, but how many of us really are, when confronted with those circumstances?

The three main characters, Jivan, PT Sir and Lovely, alternate points of view, with occasional interludes with side characters to give an even wider perspective on contemporary Kolkata. Jivan and Lovely have a very personal narration style and different vocal inflections, but strangely, PT Sir’s chapters are told in the third-person instead of the first, which feels like an odd stylistic choice. But the prose moves smoothly and quickly, taking you swiftly through subject matter that could be overwhelming at a slower pace.

There are no easy answers in A Burning, and it can be a difficult book to read if your own faith in humanity has taken a beating lately. But these stories about corruption, poverty, incarceration and choices are important, no matter where you live.

Would I Recommend It: Yes.

[wellesleybooks]

Booksellers on Vacation the Jersey Shore Edition

Welcome back, we haven’t had an episode of booksellers on vacation in awhile! 

Sally is back on the Jersey Shore with her extended family this July. Although they are all readers and packed a ton of books for the trip- we think they forgot how to pose on the beach with them.

[poetsandwriters]

What motivates me to write? The honest answer is perhaps a little dark: I imagine the feeling of great regret I’ll have to live with, if I don’t write the book that I know I can write. The wish to avoid that regret feels like fuel.

Megha Majumdar, in this week’s Writers Recommend; read the rest at pw.org!

[forasecondtherewedwon]

That is how my life is going forward—some insult in my face, some sweet in my mouth.

A Burning by Megha Majumdar

[mercerislandbooks]

A Taste of the Best of 2020

Readers, it’s been quite a year, hasn’t it? It’s hard to believe we’re even ready to talk about our favorite fiction and nonfiction books of the year. Many of us, and many of you, have found books to be a welcome escape, reading our way through all this year has thrown at us. Traditionally the staff compiles a list of the ten fiction and ten nonfiction titles from the year - the books that reminded us why we love to read so much and show us the power of the written word. Here I offer you a little appetizer to whet your appetite:

I’ll start by briefly mentioning my own personal favorite of 2020, The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett. I wrote about this back in June, and haven’t read or listened to anything since that I’ve found to be so surprising, immersive and thought-provoking. I’m not alone, it’s also a best of the year pick from Nancy and Laurie, as well as a New York Times Bestseller, a Good Morning America Book Club pick, and long listed for the National Book Award.

A close second in the fiction category, for me, is Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell, which both Nancy and Caitlin also loved. At first glance it’s a difficult sell since the story revolves around the illness and death of Shakespeare’s son, Hamnet, from the plague. The subject matter gave me a little hesitation before starting, but once I did I was so glad I picked it up. The first thing I noticed was the exquisite writing. Maggie O’Farrell’s ability to create a fully realized environment is phenomenal. A writer with this gift grounds me in the story to the degree that I can see and feel the places they are describing. The fact that I listened to the audio book only deepened this experience. The second thing that drew me in was the psychological awareness of her characters. With a non-linear narrative, we move in and out from the progression of the illness over the course of a few days, to the meeting, courtship, and marriage of Shakespeare (never named in the narrative as such) and Agnes. The ending is perfection. Give this to the historical fiction lovers in your life.

Nancy says: “Beautifully written, this creative reimagining of Shakespeare’s family and their home life, and the searing loss of a child is engrossing and moving. Five stars!!”

Both Nancy and Caitlin chose A Burning by Megha Majumdar. A debut novel, Read With Jenna Book Club Pick, and long listed for the National Book Award, this is a deeply personal and of-the-moment story from the Indian-born Majumdar, who was concerned with shining a light on the rise of right-wing nationalism in India.

Nancy says: “A tour de force from a new author, A Burning reads like a wry thriller while dissecting the realities of modern India and our human frailty when confronted with survival and moral choices. Told from three perspectives - Jivan, a plucky Muslim clerk from the slums who becomes a convenient scapegoat for a terrorist attack, and two who could help her - PT Sir, a gym teacher with political aspirations and Lovely, an intersex actress with Bollywood dreams - Majumdar’s characters have incredible original voices. I loved the writing and I couldn’t put it down!”

For a nonfiction pick, Caitlin highly recommends World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil. She says, “I read World of Wonders early on in the pandemic. Whenever I needed a lift I treated myself to an essay. An engaging and beautifully illustrated collection of essays about nature and finding a place to call your own. One of my favorite books of 2020.” This sounds like the perfect book to keep on your nightstand and dip into before bed.

For those of you who have younger readers in your life (or just like reading from the YA, Middle Grade and picture book sections like I do), our children’s specialist, Lillian, has already created “piles” of the best of 2020 for all the different categories of readers in the children’s area. You can preview some on our website.  YA readers, you’ll see lots of my favorites from this year, including Legendborn by Tracy Deonn!

This is only a taste of a few fiction and nonfiction titles that will make up our Island Books Best of 2020 list - the full list will be out at the beginning of December!

— Lori

[bookish-thinking]

Coming Soon ...

June is another busy publishing month from what I can see and find interesting. Tomorrow, June 2nd, “The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett will be published. I had mixed feelings about her “The Mothers”, but this new novel sounded fascinating: the story of black twin sisters, estranged, one growing up in a black community, the other secretly passing for white. Also coming out tomorrow, “A Burning” by Megha Majumdar, a debut novel about modern India, its problems with class and religion, as well as the choice between what is right and what is easy. Another new release is “A Song Below Water” by Bethany C. Morrow, a YA novel about black sirens - need I say more? And last but not least for June 2nd, “The Second Home” by Christina Clancy, a novel about siblings, family and memories.

On June 9th, “You Exist Too Much” by Zaina Arafat will be published, a novel about LGBT-identity caught between the chosen home of the US and Middle Eastern cultural upbringing. 

June 23rd sees another longer list, starting with “Death at Her Hands” by Ottessa Moshfegh, a comedic mystery novel with an elderly lady at the forefront as an amature detective. Another new release I do not know much about is “The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water” by Zen Cho, a heist novella with material arts and LGBT elements. Also being published on that day is “A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians” by H.G. Parry, which puts magical fantasy elements into a historical context, making the age of Enlightment a story of a magical revolution. And in similar spirit, “The Angel of the Crows” by Katherine Addison, about a alternate historical London where angels and other mystical creatures live next to humans, all threatened by Jack the Ripper.

And lastly, on June 30th, there is “Blue Ticket” by Sophie Mackintosh, a dystopian novel about motherhood and choice in a world where a lottery decides whether you can (must) bear children or can never have any.