Tag: book-review

A Warm and Witty Return: Catherine Newman’s “Wreck” Delivers More of What Made “Sandwich” Irresistible

Catherine Newman’s “Wreck” brings back beloved narrator Rocky for a funnier, more poignant sequel. Facing a health scare and local tragedy in western Massachusetts, Rocky navigates family life with Nora Ephron-esque wit. Newman brilliantly blends domestic comedy with meditations on mortality, creating intelligent comfort reading that resonates deeply.

The 2025 Booker Prize Shortlist: ‘Novels for Grown-ups…’

The 2025 Booker Prize shortlist champions literary maturity over novelty, featuring established authors including previous winner Kiran Desai. These six novels explore identity uncertainty and family disruption, from Susan Choi’s multi-generational Flashlight to Katie Kitamura’s thought-provoking Audition. Though predominantly middle-age narratives, they’re anything but safe or comfortable reading.

Before The Genocide

Today marks the International Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica, commemorating the victims of this atrocity. The UN General Assembly adopted the resolution establishing 11 July as this day of remembrance in May 2024, despite opposition from Serbia, China, Russia, Belarus, and Nicaragua.

The Asian Book Eye…

The Asian Book Eye is committed to amplifying the voices that have been marginalised, overlooked, or deliberately silenced across the vast tapestry of Asian literary communities, from South Asian powerhouses to East Asian markets, from Southeast Asian emerging voices to Central Asian storytellers whose narratives rarely cross borders.

The Asian Review Sinhala Charts New Course with International Partnerships

As The Asian Review Sinhala prepares to enter this new phase on 1st June 2025, it stands as a testament to the enduring value of literature and the importance of community-driven cultural initiatives. In choosing independence and forging international partnerships, the publication is not merely ensuring its own sustainability but is actively contributing to the enrichment of Sri Lanka’s literary landscape.

Love, Loss, and the Scars of War: Chimamanda Adichie’s Masterful Portrait of a Nation Divided

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s “Half of a Yellow Sun” stands as one of the most compelling and devastating literary works to emerge from postcolonial African literature, offering readers an unflinching examination of the Nigerian Civil War through the interconnected lives of characters whose personal struggles mirror the broader tragedy of a nation tearing itself apart.

The Perfect Life by Khushboo Shah

I sat in the graveyard, merging effortlessly in the background. When you have crossed your seventies, and you have mastered the art of sitting quietly without taking much interest in your surroundings, letting the hours slip away, it is easier to overlook you. In my case, I was worried the occasional visitor to the graveyard might think I was one of the inhabitants, taking a stroll to free their legs, cramped from lying in the grave for too long!

Between Compassion and Colonialism: Dominique Lapierre’s City of Joy

Dominique Lapierre’s City of Joy transforms statistical poverty into visceral human experience through meticulous research and compelling storytelling. Yet this powerful narrative of Calcutta’s slums raises uncomfortable questions about Western perspectives on Eastern suffering, embodying both the possibilities and profound limitations of cross-cultural understanding in contemporary literature.