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Lunch With a Bigot
The Writer in the World
by Amitava Kumar
This title was previously available on NetGalley and is now archived.
Pub Date
May 15 2015
| Archive Date
Apr 30 2015
Description
To be a writer, Amitava Kumar says, is to be an observer. The twenty-six essays in Lunch with a Bigot are Kumar's observations of the world put into words. A mix of memoir, reportage, and criticism, the essays include encounters with writers Salman Rushdie and Arundhati Roy, discussions on the craft of writing, and a portrait of the struggles of a Bollywood actor. The title essay is Kumar's account of his visit to a member of an ultra-right Hindu organization who put him on a hit-list. In these and other essays, Kumar tells a broader story of immigration, change, and a shift to a more globalized existence, all the while demonstrating how he practices being a writer in the world.
To be a writer, Amitava Kumar says, is to be an observer. The twenty-six essays in Lunch with a Bigot are Kumar's observations of the world put into words. A mix of memoir, reportage, and...
Description
To be a writer, Amitava Kumar says, is to be an observer. The twenty-six essays in Lunch with a Bigot are Kumar's observations of the world put into words. A mix of memoir, reportage, and criticism, the essays include encounters with writers Salman Rushdie and Arundhati Roy, discussions on the craft of writing, and a portrait of the struggles of a Bollywood actor. The title essay is Kumar's account of his visit to a member of an ultra-right Hindu organization who put him on a hit-list. In these and other essays, Kumar tells a broader story of immigration, change, and a shift to a more globalized existence, all the while demonstrating how he practices being a writer in the world.
Advance Praise
"These are the very best sort of essays: the kind in which the pleasure of reading derives from the pleasure of following a writer's mind as it moves from subject to subject, making us see connections we might otherwise have been unaware of. Often a single paragraph contains such a story or detail so arresting that the reader must pause to appreciate it before moving on."—Francine Prose, author of Reading Like a Writer
“Stimulating, wide-ranging, learned and funny—exactly what one wants from a book of essays."—Geoff Dyer, author of
But Beautiful: A Book about Jazz "Amitava Kumar is a sensitive, probing, erudite writer, always ready to question others and himself. It turns out his ceaseless curiosity and skepticism is the best way to write about India in all its complexity and heterogeneity—his is a fascinating mind turned towards a crucial subject."—Edmund White, author of
Inside a Pearl: My Years in Paris
"These are the very best sort of essays: the kind in which the pleasure of reading derives from the pleasure of following a writer's mind as it moves from subject to subject, making us see...
Advance Praise
"These are the very best sort of essays: the kind in which the pleasure of reading derives from the pleasure of following a writer's mind as it moves from subject to subject, making us see connections we might otherwise have been unaware of. Often a single paragraph contains such a story or detail so arresting that the reader must pause to appreciate it before moving on."—Francine Prose, author of Reading Like a Writer
“Stimulating, wide-ranging, learned and funny—exactly what one wants from a book of essays."—Geoff Dyer, author of
But Beautiful: A Book about Jazz "Amitava Kumar is a sensitive, probing, erudite writer, always ready to question others and himself. It turns out his ceaseless curiosity and skepticism is the best way to write about India in all its complexity and heterogeneity—his is a fascinating mind turned towards a crucial subject."—Edmund White, author of
Inside a Pearl: My Years in Paris
Available Editions
| EDITION |
Other Format |
| ISBN |
9780822359302 |
| PRICE |
$24.95 (USD)
|
Additional Information
Available Editions
| EDITION |
Other Format |
| ISBN |
9780822359302 |
| PRICE |
$24.95 (USD)
|
Average rating from 11 members
Featured Reviews
Librarian 148649
This book was a solid three stars for me most of the way through.
The essays ranged a bit in quality, and Kumar absolutely shined when he turned his intellect outward. His discussion with Arudhati Roy, the boxer on the flight, and the essays on Kashmir were strong and hit hard. His contemplations on writing tended to be more hit and miss, as I find most writers writing about writing tend to be. The weakest essay in the book was his piece on ten rules of being a writer-- it felt very self-satisfied, and that obsession with self pops up in a number of the essays in ways that got on my nerves.
And then I hit the last essay and legitimately started sniffling in public. The books started on a strong note and left me with a lasting emotional impression.
Featured Reviews
Librarian 148649
This book was a solid three stars for me most of the way through.
The essays ranged a bit in quality, and Kumar absolutely shined when he turned his intellect outward. His discussion with Arudhati Roy, the boxer on the flight, and the essays on Kashmir were strong and hit hard. His contemplations on writing tended to be more hit and miss, as I find most writers writing about writing tend to be. The weakest essay in the book was his piece on ten rules of being a writer-- it felt very self-satisfied, and that obsession with self pops up in a number of the essays in ways that got on my nerves.
And then I hit the last essay and legitimately started sniffling in public. The books started on a strong note and left me with a lasting emotional impression.
